


Once Upon a Time in Riverdale [Complete]

by wyattnash



Category: Riverdale - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, F/M, Mystery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-28
Packaged: 2020-10-04 17:15:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 13
Words: 50,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20474672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyattnash/pseuds/wyattnash
Summary: When a Blossom twin goes missing, nobody's secrets are safe. Everyone in Riverdale has something to hide, but who will get to the bottom of this mystery first? And will they be too late?Alternately: my version of the first season of Riverdale with a creative spin.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> There are ships and characters tagged that haven't made an appearance in this first chapter. If you want to see what happens next...please please please leave a review to let me know!

It was the Fourth of July weekend when everything changed in the small town just north of Connecticut. Riverdale had always been a place of great mystery, there weren’t many visitors, and nobody ever seemed to leave for long. Hermione Lodge was an example of someone who found themselves reappearing after some time away. Accompanying her this time wasn’t her husband and fellow former resident Hiram Lodge, it was their daughter Veronica, who was a rare new arrival. The sixteen-year-old had been tasked with picking up dinner for the two Lodge women. She stepped foot into Pop’s diner, not sure what to expect. She had grown up eating out in exquisite restaurants, where you’d be surrounded by manhattans elite every evening, scoring yourself a coveted spot on Page Six if you were to ever be so lucky. She had been working her way up in the upper east side’s social circle, becoming a socialite who would rival the Blair Waldorf’s of the world. That all came crashing to a halt when scandal rocked their family and the patriarch of their family ended up behind bars. It was merely a blue-collar crime, but the shame had been too much for Hermione who uprooted her family one afternoon nearing the end of summer, just in time for her one and only daughter to start her sophomore year anew.

Veronica stared at the décor as she stepped foot inside the quaint diner. It felt like being on a movie set, it was unlike any place she had ever been. She noticed an array of different people. Young children sitting alongside their parents, nibbling on onion rings, and sipping from milkshakes the side of their heads. She never had memories like that with either one of her parents. It was nice, she decided, looking around the room once again. A group of boys sat in the back corner, wearing matching leather jackets with the term ‘Southside’ sprawled across the back with bold lettering. She had never seen a motorcycle gang in the flesh before, but it seemed somewhat exciting.

“Haven’t seen you around here before.” The voice of a boy interrupted her thoughts, she turned her head just in time to see an attractive boy talking directly to her. She knocked the hood off her head and smiled at the red head. “That’s because I just moved here.” She told him, smiling up at him ever so sweetly. He laughed warmly before nodding his head at her words. “Just in time for school to start.” He said, running his fingers over the bold lettering of his letterman jacket. Her eyes followed his hands as she took in what he was wearing. It once again felt like a movie. No boy wore such a thing at her previous school, in fact there weren’t any boys at her school at all.

“Lucky me.” She mused, giving him another once over before their eyes met. “I have been assigned a guide to show me around your school, Betty Cooper. Do you know her?” She questioned.

The boy laughed. “It’s Riverdale, we know everybody.” He pointed out.

She mimicked his laughter, nodding her head. It made sense that a small town would have more of six degrees of separation than her old scene.

Pop Tate chose this moment to interrupt the pair. “Order for Lodge?” He called out, a little confused because he hadn’t heard that name in a long time.

“Well, that’s me.” Veronica told the boy, taking a step toward the counter.

He nodded his head. “I’ll see you at school, Lodge.” He told her, hoping he’d get to talk to her again.

Veronica smiled and left him to collect her order.  
Pop Tate smiled at the girl, who resembled her mother quite well. “Hermione Gomez’s daughter, I presume?”

Veronica hesitated for a second. She wasn’t used to this kind of attention, but she nodded and let out a soft chuckle. “That would be me.”

He grinned at the young girl. “You tell your mother Pop Tate says hello, won’t you?”

She nodded. “Absolutely.”

* * *

Betty Cooper ran her fingers through her hair as she waited for Archie to return to their booth with napkins. She looked up as the brunette wearing high heels headed toward the exit. She watched her momentarily before looking up to see Archie walking back to her. Her face lit up as the boy sat down across from her again.

“I can’t believe school starts tomorrow.” Archie said as he sat down, leaning back to make himself more comfortable.

Betty placed her hands on either side of her face as she watched him with adoration. “Mhmm me too.” She said, dazed.

“Are you going to Thornhill for the back to school bash this weekend?” He asked her.

Betty shook her head. “Even if my mom would let me, you know I don’t really like that house, or those who occupy it.”

Archie laughed. “Still? Come on, Cheryl isn’t that bad anymore. I mean she’s kinda cool…”

Betty pulled a face. “Arch, she’s only nice to you because she’s a Vixen, and you’re a Bulldog. I’m just a Cooper.”

His face fell awkwardly because Archie had never thought about it that way and had no idea how to respond. “You want an Orange Freeze?” He asked her. “My treat...” He offered, making the blonde smile once again. He knew she couldn’t resist one of those and it worked in his favour.

Betty loved that about Archie. He somehow always knew how to make her smile.

* * *

Monday morning came by faster than any teenager was ready for. In almost every household across this quaint small town, mothers and fathers were bursting into bedrooms to interrupt dreams and disrupt sleep. The only kid on the Northside who didn’t need a wakeup call was Betty Cooper who was awake half an hour before her alarm, almost early enough to wake up her own parents, which would have worked out if Alice Cooper wasn’t every bit as punctual and organised as her youngest daughter was.

Betty bounded down the staircase to an assortment of different aromas, all equally as enticing as the last. The breakfast spread was mouth-watering as per usual. Alice was a perfectionist who wanted nothing but the best for her two daughters.

“Is Polly home yet?” Betty asked as she pulled out a chair to sit herself down.

Alice wasn’t entirely sure how to answer that. She sat down at the head of the table and played with her napkin. “Not yet Honey.” She answered meekly. The situation was complicated, and she didn’t want to involve Betty in the politics of the matter. Polly was safe for now, and a few little white lies weren’t going to hurt her second daughter in the meantime. “She’ll be back at home, and in school before no time. I promise.” She said warmly, taking her opportunity to start eating to try and deter Betty from asking too many questions

Betty wasn’t sure why her sister had left so suddenly. Her father had told her that Polly was unwell and needed time to recover, but Betty had caught Alice slipping up with the details a week ago, so Betty knew they were hiding something. She just couldn’t prove it just yet. It had been on her mind for quite a while, in between her and Kevin’s plan to get Archie to finally notice her in a girlfriend kind of way. That had been what they spent most of their summer doing. Kevin had said more than once that it was too hard for him to date in a straight town like Riverdale, so he needed to live vicariously through her until someone did him a favour and finally came out. He said he wasn’t even fussy at this point, although Betty knew he had a type, and she wished that he wouldn’t ever have to settle for anything less, which Kevin had said the same to her, insisting that Archie was the one for her, and settling for anything less was doing herself an injustice. It was a big confidence boost, and Betty really needed one after all of the times she had chickened out in freshman year.

“I saw Jason last night at Pop’s.” She mentioned casually, looking up at her mother to catch her reaction. She wasn’t disappointed to find Alice rolling her eyes as if her life depended on it.

“I can’t wait for that boy to graduate and do us all a favour as he moves far far away.” She commented. It was Jason’s fault that Polly wasn’t living under their roof, and although Betty didn’t know that, her daughter did know how much Alice despised the boy. “You’re going to be late.” She told the girl across from her. Betty truly would not be late, but Alice didn’t want to talk any longer, and Betty did still have to get dressed, and her plate was near empty anyway.

* * *

Veronica sat down in the Principal’s office as she waited for Betty Cooper, the girl assigned to show her around. Since Betty was never tardy, she only had to wait a minute or two before the ponytailed blonde wandered in asking for her. The receptionist pointed over toward the new student and Veronica stood up and walked over to her. “Betty, right?” She asked, her lipticked smile spread across her cheeks lighting up her whole face.

Betty nodded her head. “You must be Veronica. I saw you briefly last night in Pop’s Chocklit Shoppe…” She said.

Veronica smiled. “Oh! I must have missed you, I was only there a few minutes. You should have said hello.”

Betty nodded, although she was glad, she hadn’t. It may have been awkward to do so.

The two girls started their tour of Riverdale High, which ended in the hallway with Betty taking Veronica to her locker, making sure the girl knew how to use hers. To Betty’s surprise Veronica picked it up straight away and their time together came to an end. Kevin came over to the pair when he finished up with his own locker. “You must be Veronica.” He said, holding his hand out to her. “I’m Kevin Keller, Betty’s best friend, and wingman.”

Betty laughed shyly at his introduction.

“Nice to meet you Kevin Keller.” Veronica said sweetly, taking his hand to give it a polite shake.

She turned back toward the hallway so the three of them could walk comfortably together. When she saw the boy with red hair walking through the halls with a group of his footballer friends, she reached out to grab Betty’s arm. “That boy. I met him last night and forgot to ask his name.” She said, recalling that oversight she had made the night before.

“Jason Blossom?” Kevin asked, trying to get caught up.

“Jason. It suits him.” Veronica decided, eyes remaining on the boy.

“Oh. No. You’re into Jason Blossom?” Betty asked.

“I don’t know. He seemed nice…” She shrugged.

“He’s-,” Betty started, not sure how to say it.

“What Betty means is, her sister Polly and Jason were quite the hot item before summer break, and when Polly comes back, they’ll probably be back on.” Kevin told the new girl.

Veronica nodded her head. She respected that, she really did. It was just hard keeping her eyes to herself. He was handsome after all.

* * *

It was lunchtime when the student body started buzzing, the rumour mill was in overdrive. Principal Weatherbee wanted to get on top of it before misinformation became too big for him to handle. An emergency assembly was called for with all students being assembled in the school gym. Betty had no idea what was happening since she had been locked away in the Blue and Gold office working on the first edition of the school paper. Most of their writers had graduated before the summer, and she was struggling to find new writers to replace them. This interruption to the end of their lunch period was merely adding more stress to her day. As the principal made his way up to the podium, Kevin nudged her with his elbow to point out that his father was in attendance. That meant bad news. The sheriff showing up at an unscheduled school assembly wasn’t a common occurrence. Betty’s fear was that this had something to do with her missing sister. The Coopers lies about Polly’s whereabouts were troubling enough for her, she hated not trusting her parents but if something bad had happened, and the sheriff had gotten involved? That would be her worst-case scenario indeed.

The Principal cleared his throat as he stepped forward to adjust his microphone. “Students, It has come to my attention that some of you have become aware of a notable absence today.” He started, glancing across at Tom Keller for reassurance to keep going. “Regrettably I am here standing before you today with some bad news. One of our own, Cheryl Blossom has been officially declared a missing person. If any of you have any information of her whereabouts, Sheriff Keller and his deputies will be available, if you need counselling, that service will also be available to you. The Blossom family and the staff here at Riverdale High would appreciate it if you respected the family, and didn’t spread around false information, thank you.” He said, before taking a step back. Tom Keller, the sheriff said his piece, relaying a similar message to the man who spoke before him before dismissing the student body.

Betty didn’t know if she would describe her feelings as relief, or if she just felt worse about it all. Cheryl being missing didn’t explain where Polly was. Cheryl being missing just meant that everyone would be distracted by her absence, and nobody would care about where her sister had gone. She glanced down at Jason, who was acting calmer than one would expect. Her mother’s suspicions about the boy being shady just made Betty’s spidey senses tingle now. She didn’t trust Jason Blossom on a good day, but today she felt her inner Alice creeping in, and for once that wasn’t a bad thing.

Sitting a few rows back was Jughead Jones who didn’t quite know what to make of this situation either. A missing cheerleader? There was a story there and he wanted to get to the bottom of it.

* * *

Sunnyside trailer park was exactly how Alice remembered it to be. She didn’t make a habit of venturing into this side of town, and for good reason. She didn’t want to associate with the likes of the southside serpents, or anyone else who resided in that side of town, which was something she was known for. That’s why she came at night when it was less likely for her to be seen by anyone. She stepped out of her car and walked up to the trailer she intended on visiting. She had a bag in one hand and used her other to knock on the front door. The man who answered ushered her inside quickly, shutting the door behind her.

FP Jones ran his fingers through his hair as Alice set the bag down on the kitchen table. “It’s all over the news. Cops are looking everywhere.” He said to her.

Alice shook her head. “Don’t worry about it.” She insisted, walking toward the bedroom. She didn’t need directions.

He followed behind her as Alice switched on the lamp and sat down next to the sleeping cheerleader.

“Nobody knows she’s here.” Alice reminded the man. She intended for it to stay that way.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She would have felt bad for him if she wasn’t so stressed out about the missing girl. At least that’s what she told herself. 
> 
> “Cheryl is missing. I don’t care about whatever it is you came here to talk about.” She snapped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to every one who read the first update! Comments are very encouraging so please don't be shy and let me know what you love and hate (pls be gentle) hope you enjoy x

“Well that is just terrible.” Alice said as she stood in the entryway of the Coopers living room. Betty looked up from the television and across at her mother.

“She’s been missing for quite a while. They say…” Betty summarised the news update.

“That’s what I mean. Those Blossoms haven’t known where their own child has been, and only now have come forward because everyone else has noticed she’s gone.” She said in disapproval. Alice always hated the Blossoms, Betty had suspected it had something to do with Alice and Penelope in High School, she was very observant and gathered a few things over the years that suggested as much, although none of her suspicions had ever been confirmed.

“When does Dad get back from his conference?” She asked as she turned the tv off.

Alice sighed. “I don’t know Elizabeth, whenever he gets back.” She said, walking out of the room. It was late and she just wanted to go to bed.

Betty simply nodded. She didn’t think now was the time to ask after Polly again, even though that was the million-dollar question on her mind and had been since the fourth of July.

* * *

“It’s just awful isn’t it?” Veronica said as she stood behind her own mother who was watching the same news update.

Hermione nodded her head as she nursed her wine glass between both hands. “That poor family.” She said, voice void of emotion. She had history with the Blossom family too, but she still would never wish harm upon their children.

“Poor Jason.” Veronica said, taking her phone from her clutch purse to see if he had texted her back yet.

“Are you involved with that boy?” Hermione questioned. She knew her daughter and knew Veronica had a habit of getting involved with people she really shouldn’t have.

“We go to school together.” Veronica said simply. She wasn’t lying exactly since her involvement with Jason Blossom didn’t extend past her involvement with other students, such as Betty Cooper or Kevin Keller. She had each of their phone numbers too.

“The Blossoms are a unique breed.” Hermione said before taking a sip of wine. Veronica nodded her head and glanced across at the muted television set. She didn’t know what her mother meant by that, she had only met Jason thus far.

* * *

The sun had barely made its way above the horizon when Jughead Jones ordered a coffee to keep himself up. He had spent all night trying to figure out where Cheryl could be. He hadn’t spoken to her in years. To someone like Cheryl Blossom, Jughead was a fly on the wall. He wasn’t even on her radar. He was what the kids would ever so affectionately refer to as a loner if they had the chance to. There were absolutely no stakes Jughead had in this mystery, he didn’t have anything to gain or lose by trying to figure it out. It was just something he hadn’t been able to get out of his mind since it had been announced the day before. The details were quite shaky at this point. The Blossoms were tight lipped in their details, the news hadn’t exactly brought forward much to work with. When his coffee was sat in front of him, it had been accompanied by the latest edition of the Riverdale Register. Since Hal Cooper was presently out of town, it was quite clear who had made the decision to distribute an early release this week. He picked up the paper, abandoning the blank screen of his laptop for just a moment so he could read the front-page story. Alice didn’t have a reputation that included tact, and she definitely wasn’t pussyfooting around with her article. It included a harsh judgement of the Blossom family for not reporting this news sooner. Jughead had to pause after the first paragraph to gather his thoughts. If anyone hadn’t known the woman’s distaste for that family, they’d be well aware of it after this morning. The boy made a mental note to pay the woman a visit at some point in the near future. If anyone had reasons to hurt the Blossom family, Alice wasn’t being very smart in making sure the town knew it was her.

* * *

Betty Cooper felt similarly to her classmate. She didn’t get a chance to read the paper herself before her phone had blown up, with messages from Kevin asking if she had seen it. The girl rushed downstairs after gathering the gist of its contents from her best friend. She wasn’t happy about it either as one could imagine.

“Mom! What did you write about the Blossoms?” She demanded as she walked into the kitchen.

Alice let out an incredulous sigh as she turned around. She quickly wiped her hands over her apron and pushed her glasses up from her nose, so they sat upon her head. “Nothing that wasn’t true, Elizabeth.”

“The Riverdale Register doesn’t publish opinion pieces.” Betty reminded.

Alice waved her hand dismissively. “Your father doesn’t publish opinion pieces. He’s not here, is he?” She questioned, gesturing to the empty table. It had been just the two of them for several weeks now.

“When he gets home-,” Betty started, but Alice cut her off before she could finish her sentence.

“When he gets home, he can do whatever he wants, but for now I run the show. I run this household, and the family business. Your father, and your sister aren’t here, but I am, and I am beginning to that think that’s not good enough for you!” She said in frustration.

Betty frowned. She didn’t know why Alice was acting like that. It wasn’t as if she had purposely been trying to send a message like that. She loved her mother. She just loved her father and sister too. “All I am saying is there is going to be backlash for whatever spite piece you’ve published about the Blossoms. Who I still have to go to school with.”

Alice shook her head. “Jason has never cared about anything in his life, Elizabeth. You’re being dramatic. I can handle the likes of Penelope Blossom. Don’t you worry.”

Betty felt defeated in that moment. She didn’t bother to disagree, because what you learnt with Alice Cooper as your mother was that some battles just weren’t worth the fight.

* * *

When Archie Andrews arrived at school. He was surprised to be dragged into a classroom by fellow bulldogs, Moose and Reggie. The room was already filled with RiverVixens and fellow football players, each handing out t’shirts to one another. Archie had been busy most of the evening and clearly missed the memo here. When a shirt was finally passed to him, he unfolded it to reveal a plain white shirt with red block letters spelling out the words “Cheryl Blossom Support Team.” He didn’t know how a t’shirt was going to bring the girl back, but he felt as though everyone who was given one was expected to wear it, rather than it being optional. He watched as other teenagers pulled the shirts on over the top of their other clothes, so he took their lead. Absent from this meeting was Jason Blossom, because yes Archie had noticed. There was something about those twins that made sure their presence was always known whether they intended it to be or not.

Reggie patted him on the back when Archie’s white shirt was on. “Midge is organising a search party tonight, all of Cheryl’s favourite places.” He told the red head.

Archie nodded. He was pretty sure the Blossoms would have looked there first. It’s not like the girl was going to be hiding out at the nail salon waiting for her friends to find her. His mind had already gone to dark places, which was why he wasn’t sure why everyone else was acting as though this was some long elaborate game of hide and seek. “I’ll try and make it.” He told the other boys as he slung his backpack over his shoulder again.

Moose smiled at him before returning to his girlfriend’s side. Archie saw this as his opportunity to slip out the door. He wanted to get in some time in the music room before school started.

He didn’t mean to almost bowl Betty over in his rushed exit, but there the girl was bracing herself with her hand pressed against the wall.

“Sorry Betty. I didn’t see you, are you okay?” He asked, reaching out to place a gentle hand on her arm.

Betty smiled up at him, clearly a little flustered. “I’m fine Arch, really.” She said, smiling up at the boy she had been crushing on for quite some time. When her eyes stopped lingering on his face she finally noticed his new t’shirt. “Nice…shirt...” She said, a little unsure of herself because it wasn’t exactly something she knew how to react to.

“Oh.” He said, remembering the peer pressured fashion accessory he was still wearing. “It’s just this thing for the football players, and the cheerleaders…I can get you one if you want. Sure, they won’t mind.” He offered.

Betty shook her head. “No. I’m okay. I don’t think the Blossoms would appreciate the mixed message.” She said, referring to the article she was sure everyone already knew about.

Archie laughed awkwardly. “Oh. Right.” He said.

“I could walk with you to class if you’d like?” She suggested, hoping he wouldn’t turn down the offer. He had been distracted all summer and they hadn’t really spent much time together lately.

He shook his head. “I would, but I was heading to the music room, actually.” He said, using his thumb to point over his shoulder in the general direction.

Betty waited for him to offer for her to come, but he didn’t and that made her heart sink just a little. “Well I’ll see you around.” She said to him in defeat, trying to keep her tone cheerful to prevent him realising how disappointed she really felt.

He nodded, smile across his lips. “See you around.” He said before turning on his heel and rushing across the school hall.

* * *

Ever since the news had broken Geraldine Grundy had been planning her exit strategy. She didn’t think it was safe for her to remain in Riverdale with Cheryl being missing. Secrets had a way of coming out when bad things happened. If anyone figured out that she had exchanged heated words with the missing girl before Cheryl went missing, then she would become a suspect straight away. She was sitting in the music room tapping her feet against the floor as she tried to figure out how she could skip town without bringing too much attention to herself.

She jumped as the door opened. She hadn’t been expecting anyone, and she had been especially jumpy all morning regardless.

Archie wore a big smile when he saw her. He knew it was wrong to fall in love with a teacher, but he didn’t think something that felt so right could ever truly be wrong. Could it?

She didn’t return his smile. It made her feel even more uneasy about everything. “Archie you really shouldn’t be here.” She told the boy.

Archie shook his head and noticed the stressed look upon her face. “What’s wrong?” He asked her as he moved closer with the intention of comforting him.

“I told you we were a one-time thing, and you had to stay away from me when we came back to school.” She reminded him.

Archie frowned. “I know, but last time you said it was a one-time thing, and then it turned into two, and three and four-.”

She shook her head. “I get the picture!”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.” He told her in a hushed tone.

She would have felt bad for him if she wasn’t so stressed out about the missing girl. At least that’s what she told herself.

“Cheryl is missing. I don’t care about whatever it is you came here to talk about.” She snapped.

Archie frowned. “Were you close with Cheryl? I didn’t know…”

She let out a bitter laugh. “No I wasn’t close with Cheryl. She was blackmailing me.” She said to him coldly. “She saw us Archie, and she was going to tell.”

Archie’s frown deepened. “What are you saying? Do you know where she is?” He asked, not wanting to assume the worst but his mind did go there for a moment.

“No. I have no idea where she is, but we had an argument and if anyone finds out about that, then I’m going to be the number one suspect Archie, and if they find out what we were arguing about. You will be too.” She said, wanting him to realise why she was so worked up over this.

He took a step closer to her, reaching out to take her hand. He didn’t know how to stop this from happening, or take away the hurt she was feeling but he wanted her to know he was there.

She softened only slightly at his touch, looking up into his kind eyes, getting lost in them for just a moment.

She jolted back harshly as soon as the door opened and Josie McCoy stepped into the room unsuspectingly.

“The Pussycats reserved this room this morning.” Was all the girl said as she stared across at the pair.

Archie nodded his head slowly, unsure of what else to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I 100% do not support relations between adults and minors. I debated whether I should change this part of canon for this story but I decided adding Grundy as another suspect would add more to the story overall.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He jumped when he saw a figure appearing from the darkness.
> 
> “Are they looking for me?” The girl asked.
> 
> FP shook his head. “Go back to sleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has been leaving kudos and comments. Means a lot <3

The last person Alice expected on her doorstep was Jughead Jones, she hadn’t been in the same room as him for years. It wasn’t as though their families had been close over the years. Gladys never liked her, and the feeling was definitely mutual. When the matriarch of the Jones family left with little explanation, Alice was more than guilty of spreading her fair share of judgment and speculations around. It didn’t win her any favours with FP that was for sure. It felt like forever ago now. So much had changed in recent months that everything else felt like an eternity ago.

“Forsythe Pendleton Jones the third.” She said, folding her arms across her chest. She was sitting at her desk down at The Register, most of her staff were off sight presently, apart from one intern from the local college who Alice mostly left in charge of photocopying and face checking anyway. “What can I do for you?” She asked the teenager as he meekly approached her. She knew he must have a good reason, otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered to show up.

“Jughead is fine.” He corrected. The name had never felt like him, even though Jughead wasn’t exactly the most peer friendly name either, it did make him feel more comfortable.

Alice nodded, an amused smile across her lips momentarily formed. “What can I do for you?”

Jughead tightened the grip he had upon the strap of his book bag. His knuckles were already turning white, but he did feel slightly in out of his depth. “Cheryl Blossom.” He choked out before clearing his throat and repeating the name a little louder.

Alice rolled her eyes. She really should have known the boy was there to talk about the missing girl, who was unfortunately the only newsworthy topic in their town currently.

“I’m guessing you’re not here to confess you were in a torrid love affair with the girl?” She said dryly as she dropped her arms out of their former position.

Jughead pulled a face that made the woman want to laugh. “Pull up a chair. I’ll see what I can do for you.” She said.

* * *

After an unsuccessful search for the head vixen, the student body ended up at the diner which was always good for business. Pop Tate had seen many kids come and go from Riverdale High in his time, but he hadn’t seen such a scene as he had this very night. He didn’t know what happened to the Blossom girl, but he knew it was serious. Jason wasn’t in attendance which was peculiar to say the least. The Bulldogs rarely gathered socially without their fearless leader. The boy was a menace and it was often a wonder why his peers even liked him, but Pop knew he had a softer side. He had witnessed it first-hand. Whenever the eldest Cooper girl came in with the red head Pop often thought he was seeing a completely different boy sit opposite her. He hadn’t seen the two of them together in a short while, in fact he had just seen Jason leave in the nick of time with Hermione’s girl, missing out on the cohort of students wearing his sister’s name across their chests.

Veronica was focused on taking Jason’s mind off of his sister’s disappearance. She had jumped at the chance to have an early dinner with him when he asked and didn’t think twice when he asked her to come inside his mansion when he reminded her of his parents’ absence. She was a smart girl who knew her limits, but Jason’s ‘grief’ definitely hit her in her blind spots. If she had been thinking more clearly perhaps it would have been clearer to her that the boy’s intentions weren’t entirely earnest. It was after she had finished her first drink when he tried to kiss her, did Veronica finally start to feel uneasy about the whole situation. “Jason.” She whispered as he dipped his head forward. She could feel his breath on her lips, but he didn’t move forward after her voice had broken the silence.

“Too soon?” He asked in a whisper.

She nodded and pulled back to look at him with a tilted glance. “What happened between you and Polly?” She asked.

Jason let out an awkward laugh. “Polly?” He asked, clearly surprised to learn the girl knew anything about his involvement with the blonde.

Veronica nodded. “I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable. I just don’t want to be the ‘other woman,’” She said, feeling almost embarrassed to be saying such a thing.

He shook his head. “No, no of course not.” He agreed. He moved to sit up straighter and downed the contents of his own glass. “Polly is gone.” He said, running his hand through his red hair.

Veronica watched his movement, admiring the contrast between his pale skin and the softness of the mess of orange as it fell between his fingertips. “Gone where?” She asked quietly.

“I don’t know, V.” He said, voice shaking for only a second. “Everyone leaves me. First Polly, now Cheryl…”

Veronica felt bad for him instantly. “Oh Jason. It’s not like that.” She promised, reaching out to take his hand.

“Then where are they?” He asked, looking into her dark eyes as if he was searching for answers.

Veronica didn’t know what to tell him. She just knew that there was a reason why she was brought into his life, and into this town, and maybe this was it?

* * *

There was a knock on the door of FP’s trailer. The man grunted and groaned as he rolled off of the pull-out sofa and stumbled to answer it. He was grumpy and tired and wasn’t used to getting visitors. Alice had been stopping by quite frequently lately, but they hadn’t scheduled anything for this evening which was why he had been sleeping instead of cleaning up or smoking to calm his nerves. She was impossible to get along with at the best of times, but when the stakes were so high, he really needed the extra help to avoid her nit-picking and an argument. He made it to the door and opened it without thinking much of it.

Tom Keller stood in the door way which was the last person FP expected to be seeing this time of night, or any time of day really. “Sheriff, what can I do for you?” He asked in a groggy voice. He was tired and the sheriff had no business being in his home right now.

Tom smiled at his former classmate. “Sorry to intrude on your evening. We’re just sweeping the neighbourhood, asking around to see if anyone knows anything that may help us locate the whereabouts of Cheryl Blossom.” He said to him sincerely.

“I don’t think I could even pick that girl from a line up.” FP told him, shaking his head.

Tom nodded his head and glanced behind himself briefly. “I don’t mean to be insensitive here, but if you know anything, anything at all. It’s better to speak up than to wait to be found out later.” He said to him kindly. He wished no harm upon the man, but he wasn’t blind to the lifestyle FP had chosen for himself. The man had once been the star of their high school football team. He was going places. Now? He was a leader of a gang, one that had quite the poor reputation, no thanks to Alice who made sure nobody had an opportunity to forget what the serpents were capable of.

“The serpents have nothing to do with some spoilt brat running away from home.” FP snapped. He wasn’t about to be blamed for something he didn’t do just because of where he lived and who he associated with. He was sick of everything being blamed on the serpents. Alice had made his life difficult enough without the cops looking for an easy target to blame it all on. He grabbed the edge of his front door ready to slam it in the Sheriff’s face.

“You have a good night then.” Tom said to him, tilting his hat down in some attempt at a polite gesture. FP didn’t care about his politeness and closed the door.

He jumped when he saw a figure appearing from the darkness.

“Are they looking for me?” The girl asked.

FP shook his head. “Go back to sleep.” He said to her as he pressed his back against the closed front door. He wasn’t sure how long he could keep doing this. All of these secrets, and with Alice of all people? He needed to put an end to it sooner rather than later.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Polly?” She heard the boy ask before catching the last second of him grabbing onto Betty’s arm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I missed updating yesterday! I made up for it by making this one longer.

If anyone doubted that Jason’s infamous back to school bash would go ahead, they were in for a shock. Gone was the tradition of partying the house down in Thornhill, and in with a new tradition in a new location, Thistle house. Clifford Blossom had made it very clear that no teenage hormone infested event would be taking part in his home whilst his daughter was missing. He claimed it was because his wife was far too distraught, but Jason knew he never liked it when he had people over. Even when they were out of town and he didn’t have to be aware of it. This worked in their favor however, because Jason didn’t have to worry about disrupting his Nana’s sleep or irritating the neighbors. Cheryl wasn’t around to organize everything, so he had been forced to wing it. Veronica helped where she could, but Jason really wasn’t fussed. So long as they had plenty of booze and music pumping through every speaker he didn’t care about much else.

Veronica was still learning the ins and outs of Riverdale high. She knew the Vixens ran the show, and the Bulldogs were right there alongside them. Although with Cheryl gone, the Vixens were lost without a leader and chaos was ensured. Jason had told her she should try out for the team, and she had been thinking it over for several days. She didn’t see much of Betty after that first day but whenever she and Kevin passed her in the hallway Veronica made sure to be friendly. She liked them a lot, everything had just been so intense with Cheryl being gone and the start of the school year being so hectic anyway. She had asked them to come to the party, but Kevin wasn’t so sure that Betty would be up for it.

As night fell and the house slowly started to fill with bulldogs, vixens, and students alike. Veronica found herself floating between both familiar and unfamiliar faces. She was still getting to know her student body and being outside of the school setting somehow made it increasingly difficult to remember who was who. She was still learning the hierarchy of this town. Jason tried to explain to her the difference between the North and the South, but it was all just muddled up in her mind. She sipped from her plastic cup of beer which was freshly pumped from a keg by a boy named Moose. She never imagined her life would turn out this way, but somehow it had.

When Archie Andrews arrived, his arrival was made known to everyone by the loud cheers made by football players. He had debated whether or not he should come too, and ultimately decided that he may as well make an appearance to avoid questions arising in the school halls come Monday.

“Have you tried the punch?” He asked Veronica as the two lingered at the snack table. It had turned out that Jason’s lack of organization skills had been remedied by Veronica rather quickly upon her arrival. There was plenty of food and an assortment of drinks laid out, which seemed to be much appreciated.

She shook her head and smiled up at the boy. “That will be my next move.” She said with a smile, watching the boy as he started to fill his cup with the brightly colored liquid. “You’re Archie, right?” She asked, trying to make conversation. She was yet to talk to the boy one on one. She knew that Betty was friends with him, and that he played on the football team with Jason. That was about the extent of her knowledge which was still pretty good considering she had been in town for less than a week.

He nodded. “The one and only.” He joked between sips.

She chuckled in amusement. “Two handsome red heads in one small town. When will to two of you battle it out for dominance?” She asked him.

He gave her a quizzical expression because what the hell did that even mean? He laughed it off in order to avoid embarrassing her. “For the first ten years of my life I thought we were cousins until my dad told me that not every red head is related.” He said with a short laugh.

Veronica found his tidbit quite endearing. She looked up at the taller teen for a moment, figuring out what she could share in return. Jason’s warm hand met with her hip as he came up behind her. “Hey Andrews, keeping the guest of honor company, huh?” He asked, smiling down at Veronica as she turned to look up at him instead.

“Archie and I were just talking about you.” She informed the second boy.

“All good things I hope.”

Veronica shook her head. “No, definitely not.” She joked.

Jason let out a belly laugh as he moved to wrap his arm around her small frame. Archie didn’t quite know how to act in this scenario. He always admired Jason, everyone did. He was the self-appointed BMOC as Fred Andrews liked to call him behind closed doors, but over the recent summer Archie had come to learn that Jason really wasn’t all that, and the way he was throwing himself at another girl so soon after Polly? He just didn’t have it in him to pretend the other boy was all that anymore.

“You guys have fun.” He said politely, nudging his hand to the left as though he was gesturing toward another partygoer, he urgently wanted to say hello to. Luckily for him neither of the two were even paying attention anymore. He shuffled away from the pair and awkwardly found himself walking in front of Josie.

“Hey.” He drew out. Ever since the pussycat had walked in on his intimate moment the other morning Archie had made a point of avoiding her. It wasn’t entirely a conscious decision as he often found himself doing it part way through. He knew he didn’t need to feel guilty, and that society just wasn’t willing to accept his love, but he still felt like the girl would judge him and that made him feel uncomfortable.

“Hi Archie.” Josie said sweetly. She was waiting for her friends to arrive. Usually her mother didn’t let her go to parties, but Sierra McCoy was busy helping the sheriff with the whole Cheryl situation and was working late once again. Josie took this as her opportunity to have an ounce of a social life even for just one night.

“I didn’t know you liked parties…” the red head said awkwardly. He kept shuffling his feet from side to side which made it quite clear to the girl that he was uncomfortable.

“Look Archie, if you’re trying to be nice to me because of what I didn’t see the other day then don’t bother. That’s your business.” She said, letting out a sigh. The last thing she needed right now was for Archie Andrews to pretend to be nice to her so that she wouldn’t tell anyone his secret. She wasn’t even sure if she had seen anything really. They moved too fast for her to be sure what was even going on. It was obvious now that something inappropriate had been interrupted, but her conscience was clear. She didn’t want to be a part of any more scandals. Her focus was on her music and her career, not who Archie Andrews was kissing.

“Oh.” He said, mouth agape for a moment longer than it should have been. “I didn’t mean for it to seem like I was-,” he felt bad for being so transparent.

Josie just shook her head. “Don’t sweat it.” She said sincerely, hoping that they could just put this awkward inconvenience behind them.

Archie smiled as he visibly started to relax. “You want a drink?” He asked.

Josie hesitated for a moment. Her friends hadn’t arrived yet and if they had she definitely hadn’t spotted them yet. She glanced around the room before nodding. “Sure.”

* * *

Betty wasn’t sure why Jughead Jones had been lurking outside of her parents place of business. She thought she saw him leaving just a few days ago, and now he was right outside and she had confirmation that her eyes hadn’t been playing her for a fool the first time. She debated whether or not she should go over and confront him or not. Kevin was waiting for her, desperate for company at Jason’s stupid party. She didn’t want to go but her best friend wanted moral support as he worked up the courage to talk to the mysterious boy he had been crushing on.

Betty was about to talk herself out of it when she noticed exactly why Jughead was lurking in the shadows. The grip on her Pop’s take out bag tightened as she followed the boy into the alleyway behind the Register. He turned around when he heard the faint sound of a light footstep. He pressed his finger to his lips to remind her to keep quiet. Betty moved beside him to watch as her mother’s bouncy blonde curls came to a halt. The man she was meeting behind the dumpster finally turned and Betty’s mouth fell open in surprise, just as Jughead’s brows knitted together. Neither one of the teens could make out anything their parents were saying, and Betty really was trying to hear even the slightest hint of a legible word, but she had no such luck. The two adults were whispering in a dark alleyway where they had the security of keeping their conversation quiet.

When the two conspirators finished their conversation Betty found herself scrambling to move as quickly and as quietly as she could. The last thing she wanted was her mother catching them in the act of spying, she would never hear the end of it. She moved just as quickly as Jughead had been. Alice held back, allowing for FP to leave first and make the whole exchange appear less conspicuous than needed to be. FP’s stride was no match for the pair of teens who just made it out of the alleyway without being seen. They were still too close for comfort, and Betty had seen one too many movies over her summer break, which explained why her first thought to cover up why the two teens were there was to lean in to kiss the boy she was once friends with.

Jughead leaned back against the wall of the building and instinctively placed a hand on the small of the blonde’s back as they shared an impromptu intimate moment.

FP shuffled out of the alley and ran his fingers through his hair before turning to make his exit. His eyes lingered on the pair as his eyes recognized the crowned beanie in the street light. He didn’t acknowledge the boy formally and instead continued walking, giving the two a chance to scram before Alice came out and made a scene.

Jughead took in a deep breath as Betty finally felt safe enough to pull away. She wiped her bottom lip and the boy did the same as their bodies pulled apart and they were back to their own personal space. She lifted her take out bag up, intending to leave the food for her mother so she didn’t forget to eat.

Jughead stood up straight and started to walk away. He didn’t know what to say to the girl. That definitely wasn’t how he had envisioned his first kiss to be.

Betty opened the front door she was so familiar with and ventured inside. She didn’t know what happened to Jughead, but he was gone by the time she stepped outside again.

“Elizabeth?” Alice asked as she went to go back inside herself.

“I was just dropping you off some dinner before I go to Kevin’s.” Betty said to her sweetly.

Alice placed her hand on her chest and smiled at the girl who was always so thoughtful. “Thank you Honey, I’ll see you tomorrow?”

Betty nodded her head, forcing a smile. She just didn’t know how to face her mother knowing that she had some shady business with the serpent king. No matter what it was, Betty was sure her mother was up to no good.

* * *

Archie was having too much fun with Josie to notice how many missed calls he had received since his arrival at the party. Melody and Valerie were dancing with them alongside some of the other bulldogs. It was the first thing Betty noticed when she walked in with Kevin on her arm. She watched a clearly intoxicated Archie seem to be having the time of his life with Josie, which wasn’t someone she had ever seen him hang out with before. The little green-eyed monster inside of her started to wonder if Josie was the reason why he suddenly had an interest in music, and spending so much time in the music room. She didn’t want to feel jealous of something that hadn’t even been confirmed but she couldn’t help the dread inside of herself as herself and Kevin walked through to sea of drunken teens in search of a friendly and familiar face they could interact with.

“Cooper look out!” A voice bellowed from across the room. Betty ducked her head just in time for a football to come flying past her in the direction of Reggie Mantle. He caught the ball and immediately moved to throw it back to another boy.

“Didn’t their mothers ever teach them that playing with balls is impolite?” Kevin commented as he reached out to make sure Betty was okay.

“I need a drink.” Betty told him. The youngest Cooper really wasn’t the alcohol drinking type. That was more of a Polly thing, and everyone knew it. In fact, it was a rare sight to even have Betty wearing her hair down for the night.

“You sure?” Kevin asked her.

Betty didn’t bother responding because she didn’t need to verbalize it. She made a beeline toward the table of drinks and made sure to fill her cup up to her liking.

Veronica stood at the top of the stairs, watching teens mingling from afar. Jason was only a few steps behind her. He had tried to make another move on her which she had swiftly brushed off as though she hadn’t even noticed. She did like him but they hardly knew each other and contrary to popular belief back in New York, she wasn’t that kind of girl.

“Apparently we need more ice.” Jason told her. He wasn’t all that impressed with having to be responsible for everything. Cheryl did so much more than he even realized needed to be done.

“Do you want me to go and get some?” Veronica asked him.

“I can go.” He said, shaking his head at her offer.

“Are you sober enough?” She asked, just wanting him to be safe.

Jason shrugged. “I feel fine,” he said before he moved to descend the stairs.

Veronica didn’t feel very confident about that, but she wasn’t sure he would like her telling him otherwise. She followed him down the stairs and through a group of loud teenagers.

“Polly?” She heard the boy ask before catching the last second of him grabbing onto Betty’s arm.

Betty was startled by the mistaken interaction. Jason had only seen her from behind, so it was an honest mistake. It was just an uncomfortable one that made her feel entirely out of place. “No. I’m sorry.” She said as the boy dropped her arm.

Jason let out an awkward laugh. He honestly believed for a second that his girlfriend, or ex, he wasn’t even sure at this point, had shown up to see him. He had been so distracted by everything else lately that he didn’t realize how much her absence was actually toying with his mind. “Right, Betty. You look good or whatever.” He said to the blonde before taking a step back to assess the ice situation.

“You okay?” Veronica whispered to the other girl.

Betty reassured her with a small smile, her fingers ran over the tingling imprint Jason had left on her arm. She really didn’t want to be there in the first place but now her comfort level had almost been entirely thrown out of the window.

* * *

Jughead’s mind had been swimming with thoughts all evening. After a quick dinner he had settled down for the night. He was lucky it was still warm out and he didn’t need any extra blankets this time of year. Sleeping at the drive in wasn’t ideal but things at home hadn’t been the greatest. He knew his father had sobered up but the two had never been the closest they were just too different. FP grew up playing football and seemed to still somehow be a social animal, at least that’s the way it was between him and the other serpents. Jughead preferred to be in the background. The only classes he’s ever skipped have been gym, and he liked to be alone with a good book or his laptop over spending time with anyone else. Without his mother, as problematic as she was, and Jellybean at home with them, Jughead just didn’t know if he was ready for that kind of relationship yet. His dad had never hit him or shown any signs of abuse toward him while he was drunk, but that didn’t make it any less traumatic for him. When your dad needed alcohol just to stomach getting out of bed in the morning, your mind tended to go dark places trying to figure out why you weren’t good enough. Being alone was something Jughead felt both comfortable being, and as though he deserved.  
It wasn’t as if he forwarded his mail to the drive in, so getting visitors of any description was indeed an uncommon occurrence. There was only one person who actually knew that he considered it his home and that was the man who had shared an alleyway conversation with Alice a few hours earlier.

Jughead stood up from his position on his makeshift bed so he could open the door. FP’s tapping stopped as soon as the door handle started to jiggle.

“Dad, what are you doing here?” He asked as soon as he was face to face with the senior serpent.

“Just checking in on my boy.” FP said with a shrug. “Thought it would be irresponsible of me to skip out on giving you the birds and the bees talk all things considering.” He said dryly.

Jughead frowned because this all seemed to be coming from left field.

“You didn’t tell me you had a girlfriend.” FP prompted, trying to jog his memory.

Jughead ran his fingers through his dark hair. “I don’t have a girlfriend, and Mom already gave me the talk when I was eleven and you stashed your porno magazines under my mattress.” He said in a disapproving tone.

FP laughed. “Yeah I figured.” He said in reference to the girlfriend situation. He made himself comfortable on one of the seats, swinging his leg over the other side as he sat upon it backwards. “What were you doing sniffing around the Register?” He asked point blank.

Jughead’s jaw stiffened. He didn’t know how his dad had the nerve to ask him that when he should be the one asking that same question in reverse. “Mrs Cooper has been giving me pointers for the school paper.” He lied.

FP shook his head. “Now I recall you saying, and I quote, ‘The Blue and Gold is what’s wrong with America, censorship interfering with a student’s right to consume and deliver news--,”

“Okay I get it.” Jughead complained. He didn’t appreciate FP’s new habit of actually paying attention.

FP laughed. “I wouldn’t make a habit of kissing her daughter, Jug. Nothing good can come of it.” He advised gently.

Jughead simply let out a sigh.

* * *

During Jason’s absence nobody even seemed to notice the lack of a host. Veronica managed to convince Betty to dance with her and admittedly it had helped the girl relax. Neither girl knew where Kevin had disappeared to but it wasn’t as though the boy could get into too much trouble anyway.

Betty was intoxicated but dancing with Veronica made her feel exhilarated. She’d never had a real female friend before. It was always boys, first Archie and Jughead, and then Kevin in more recent years. It was nice having a girl to have fun with, and who wasn’t doing it because their mother told her to.

When the music was abruptly cut off, Betty let out a whine of complaint. The house lights were turned on and the room went quiet as confusion swept across the party.

“Party’s over kids.” Sheriff Keller announced.

Betty turned around to see if Kevin had reappeared yet. She really couldn’t go home like this. She needed to stay the night with Kevin like originally planned.

Veronica took Betty’s hand and started walking toward the sheriff. “Excuse me Sheriff Keller?” She said politely as they approached. “What’s going on here, where’s Jason?”

Tom hadn’t met Veronica yet but he knew who she was straight away. “Miss Lodge. Jason Blossom was caught drunk driving. And considering most of you here are underaged, no, all of you are, I’m here to make sure everyone else gets home safe. We’re all very lucky nobody got hurt tonight.” He answered.

Veronica looked at Betty with a concerned expression.

Betty sighed dramatically. “I need to find Kevin,” she said.

“I’ll drive you and Kevin home.” Tom told the blonde. “Veronica do you need a ride?” He asked.

She shook her head. “No, I’ll call my driver.”

Tom was satisfied with that answer. It just meant he had one less teenager to be responsible for.

* * *

When FP pulled up outside of his trailer, he cut the engine of his truck and climbed out. It was pretty late, and he hadn’t intended to be out that long. He let himself inside and walked into the bedroom. He gently nudged the shoulder of Toni Topaz who had fallen asleep on a chair in the corner. “Thanks Toni.” He said to her in a whisper.

Toni rubbed her tired eyes and let out a yawn. She was exhausted. Looking after a Northsider girl all night wasn’t how she typically spent her weekends, but FP trusted her, and she would do anything to help out a fellow serpent.

FP glanced down at the sleeping girl. She looked so peaceful which was something that put his mind at ease. It reminded him that he was doing the right thing and Alice hadn’t roped him into anything that she shouldn’t have. It would all be worth it. He pulled the sheets up over the girl to make sure she was tucked in and comfortable.

“I’m going to go home.” Toni whispered, bringing his attention back.

FP nodded. “Remember Toni…”

She nodded. “I won’t tell anyone she’s here, don’t worry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you thought! I love hearing your thoughts and theories! 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading x


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So they dated in high school. You think that means they did what, killed your sister for getting pregnant out of wedlock?” He asked, not following her wild notions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh there are so many reveals I want to tell you but it's not time for that yet. I'm so impatient lmao

Growing up in the Cooper house came with a unique set of challenges. Between dealing with the constant pressure to appear perfect, and actually trying to figure out what kind of person you actually were, both Cooper sisters found unhealthy ways of dealing with those struggles. Neither sister knew who their parents were outside of being their parents, to both Polly and Betty, Alice Cooper was the ball busting firecracker who always knew how to get things done, and Hal was, the man who expected everything to go his way. When Polly started spending more and more time away from home, the atmosphere shifted. It kept evolving until Polly wasn’t even there anymore. Betty felt the weight of that on her shoulders as time passed. Her father was still away on ‘business’ and Alice didn’t like to talk about it. Every time Betty tried to find out what happened to her sister, she just hit a brick wall over and over.

While the town was more concerned about Cheryl’s whereabouts, Polly was also considered a missing person. Betty had been in to speak with Sheriff Keller after school about this very matter. The man assured the teenager that he would do what he could, but without Alice or Hal reporting her missing his hands were tied. This frustrated the girl to a point of a headache. She didn’t want to keep slamming the breaks down dead-end streets. Her sister vanished into thin air and nobody seemed to care. A part of her wondered if she was going crazy. Maybe Polly had told her where she was headed, and she had simply forgotten. That couldn’t be the case could it? She couldn’t be losing her memories like that could she? When she made it home from her pointless visit with the Sheriff, Betty made her way upstairs. It seemed Alice was still at the office. Instead of turning into her own bedroom Betty moved across the hall and opened the door to her sister’s bedroom. She felt a chill in the air as she stepped inside the untouched room. It still looked the same as it always had and that’s what spooked the youngest cooper the most. She moved across the room to make a beeline to her sister’s set of drawers. Polly’s room wasn’t too dissimilar to her own. They were close in age and their parents raised them almost identically. Polly got her period only a month before Betty had, the two had been merely 12 and 11 at the time and Betty had thought that meant they would be bonded for life. They had entered womanhood together and she naively thought that would make them close forever. Polly had grown distant over the summer long before she disappeared. Betty still had no idea why. All she truly knew was that Polly had been unhappy and that hurt her to know.

Like Betty, the eldest of the two sisters kept a private journal of her thoughts. Betty felt almost criminal as she extracted the book from her sister’s underwear drawer. It was locked without any indication of where the key may be located. It only took her a moment or two to pick the lock with her bobby pin before the sound of the lock clicking open filled the otherwise silent room.

“What were you hiding?” Betty muttered as she turned the pages.

* * *

Jughead had been giving a lot of thought to what he had witnessed in the alleyway several nights ago. He couldn’t imagine what business his father had getting involved with Alice Cooper of all people. The woman was notorious for belittling the serpents, and even naming FP on several occasions in the past. It all confused the boy who had a curious nature at the best of times. During his discussions with Alice regarding the missing Blossom, Jughead had felt as though she was hiding more than she was letting on. Most parents seemed to have sympathy toward the Blossoms and their experience with this entire ordeal, yet Alice seemed calm and unbothered. That didn’t mean Jughead was jumping to any conclusions he shouldn’t be jumping to but it did toy with his mind a great deal. When Betty texted him asking to meet at Pops he didn’t have the heart to tell her he was already there. He was always sitting there in the same booth typing away on his laptop until the battery died. He didn’t like going back to the drive in until he was secure in the fact that nobody would know where he was resting his head at night. When the doorbell chimed and Betty walked in, he turned around to catch her as she headed in his direction. “Thanks for meeting me.” Betty said to him as she took her place on the opposite seat. He watched as she unpacked her satchel bag, taking out pages of what he assumed to be notes.

“What’s all this?” He asked her with a hint of curiosity in his tone.

Betty looked up from where she had neatly presented her presentation. “My sister has been missing since the fourth of July.” She informed him. The surprised expression on his face was one Betty expected. Nobody cared about a Cooper girl when Cheryl Blossom was taking centre stage.

“Missing, missing?” He asked just to make sure. He couldn’t honestly say that he had noticed but that didn’t mean anything. Jughead didn’t pay much attention to the Vixens. Cheryl might be the head of the squad, but always standing right next to her had been Polly Cooper, girlfriend of the missing teen’s beloved brother.

Betty nodded her head. “Every time I ask my mom where she is, I get shut down. I’m pretty sure that has something to do with why my mother and your father were conspiring behind the Register last week.” She said, feeling like this had to all be connected somehow.

“So, what. You think our parents did something to Polly?” He asked, not sure how that made any sense.

“Not in that way.” She assured him. “But I went through Polly’s journal. Her last entry was written in the final week of June.” She said, picking up the photocopied page she had made at the library on her way over. “I think she was pregnant, Jug.” Betty said, handing over the piece of paper.

Jughead scanned over the words. He did feel a little uneasy reading someone’s private thoughts but clearly Betty thought it was for a good enough cause. When he finished taking it all in, he looked up at her once again. “What does this have to do with my dad?” He asked.

Betty turned over another page she had copied. “I remembered something my mom once said to Polly and me.” She said. “She warned Polly about being involved with football players because they’d make you believe that they loved you, leave you pregnant and then break your heart.” She said before pushing the page over to the boy. “Your dad was a football player. I looked through their old yearbooks and found this.” She pointed at a photograph she had enlarged. The pictured hadn’t been focused on the young couple but there they were clearly an item.

“So they dated in high school. You think that means they did what, killed your sister for getting pregnant out of wedlock?” He asked, not following her wild notions.

Betty shook her head. “No. Polly isn’t dead. I know she isn’t.”

Jughead looked down at the photograph again. “Then what are you getting at here because I have no idea what you’re trying to tell me.”

“Have you ever heard of the Sisters of Quiet Mercy?” Betty asked him.

Jughead once again had no idea what the girl was talking about, but he had a feeling Betty was going to change that before the night was over.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “My father?” Betty asked. 
> 
> The grey-haired woman nodded once. “Wonderful man. A friend if you will.” She said with a smile.

There really wasn’t much you could get up to in the back bedroom of a trailer. Toni had tried her best to keep FP’s houseguest entertained. It was a hard task mostly. It wasn’t like they could just leave and spend the day together out in public like every other teen in town did. This bedroom was practically a slightly better decorated prison cell. The only times they left the room was to venture out to the communal bathroom, or when Toni made the girl lunch. She wasn’t the best cook in the world, but she made sure the girl was eating. That was something FP was very concerned about.

“How much longer do you think I’ll have to stay here?” She asked Toni after their third hand of UNO had been played.

“I have no idea.” Toni said to her earnestly. She didn’t know the situation in great details. Something about it not being safe for her to be at home right now, which was fair enough. Toni had her own troubles at home which made her sympathise and gave her more of a reason to help out. The more time she spent at FP’s, the more time she had away from her own household.

“I know FP is just being nice keeping me here, but is this meant to be my life forever?” She pondered. Toni didn’t have an answer. She just took her next turn. There was a lot to think about with that question and Toni just didn’t think she was the right person to be asked it.

* * *

The amount of outfit changes that had occurred in the Lodge apartment had reached an unknown number by the time Veronica had decided on an appropriate combination of clothing. She stepped out of her bedroom after finishing her make-up and perfume.

Hermione looked up from her coffee mug as her daughter bounded through the room. “Finally found the right dress?” She asked in slight amusement. The woman still didn’t approve of the boy her daughter was spending all of her time with but today she was counting on Penelope Blossom to scare her off. Meeting the parents of someone you’re dating or interested in spending time with was always a daunting experience but Hermione was certain it was a lot worse in the Blossom household. Penelope wasn’t easily impressed and made Alice Cooper seem tame in comparison.

Veronica did a twirl in front of the woman. “I think I chose wisely.” She informed her.

“As long as it stays on, I am inclined to agree with you.” Hermione said as she set her mug down and reached forward to pick up the scone she had yet to eat.

Veronica rolled her eyes. She wasn’t going to sleep with the boy. They still hardly knew each other. She would be quite happy with a kiss though, but that wasn’t something she was advertising just yet.

“Just be careful Veronica. I know these people they hold grudges and they might not be too kind to you simply because of where you came from.” Hermione warned her in the gentlest way possible.

“New York?” Veronica asked in confusion.

Hermione chuckled under her breath. Her daughter was far too naïve sometimes. “From your father and I.”

Veronica nodded in realisation. That made more sense. She knew this was where her parents grew up but up until this year, she knew almost nothing about it. The Lodges had made a new life for themselves in New York and left the old one behind. The only reason why Hermione had moved back was to do the same thing in reverse. She wanted to give her daughter a chance at a new life away from everyone who knew her and what her father had done.

“Well I’m sure I don’t need to worry too much.” Veronica told her in a positive tone. She didn’t want to go into this afternoon expecting a disaster. She thought it was quite kind of the family to invite her over. After Jason’s incident at his party she thought things would go sour between them. That was what she was used to from boys back in New York, but he seemed to bounce back quite quickly, and nothing had seemed to change. His parents had forgiven him for wrecking his car and it was as if nothing had happened.

“Just don’t get into a car with him.” Hermione said. She wanted to ban the girl from seeing Jason ever again, but she knew Veronica better than that. If she told her not to, it would make the girl want it even more. At least this way she hoped the girl would learn his faults on her own.

Veronica nodded. “I won’t. I promise.”

* * *

Betty hadn’t once alluded to what she knew about Polly when Alice was around. She had simply waited patiently for an opportunity to find answers herself. When Alice left the house this particular morning, Betty gathered her belongings and rushed out to meet Jughead at the bus stop. If they had been paying attention to their surroundings maybe they would have noticed the car parked behind the trees, where Betty’s neighbour had himself tangled up with a certain music teacher in the front seat. Instead the two teens were concerned about the whereabouts of another Elm Street teen.

Betty had never actually been to the Sisters of Quiet Mercy before. She knew of it from hushed whispers between her parents, and after googling it again recently but this was the first time she had stood inside the building. She lead Jughead through to the reception desk and asked to sign in as a visitor. It took a while to get all of the paperwork, but after filling it out the two teens were told to sit down and wait for it to be processed.

“I don’t understand why my mom wouldn’t just tell me Polly was somewhere safe.” Betty said to the boy as they sat side by side waiting to see the girl.

“Maybe your sister doesn’t want you to know.” He suggested. That sounded plausible enough to him. If Polly wanted her parents to be discreet it could explain a lot really.

Betty frowned. That didn’t sound like Polly at all. It hurt her to think that was even a possibility. “I wouldn’t judge her for being pregnant.” She insisted.

Jughead gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I know.”

“Why would they send her here?” She asked in a low whisper. “It’s not the 1960’s. Girls have babies all the time.” She said. The place was giving her the creeps already and they hadn’t made it past the reception yet. She didn’t know why anyone would want to be here, or how any parent would allow their child to stay in a facility like this.

“Guess we’ll find out soon enough.” He said to her. He looked up as a short old lady walked toward them.

“Betty Cooper, I presume?” The woman asked, looking between the two teenagers.

Betty nodded. “That’s me, and you are?” She asked.

Sister Woodhouse gave the blonde the once over. “Child, I am Sister Woodhouse. I run this facility.”

Betty opened her mouth and let out a silent ‘oh’ as she moved to stand up. “I’m just here to see my sister.”

The woman ignored Jughead and focused all of her attention on the girl. “Well why don’t we go to my office first?”

* * *

When Veronica arrived at the Blossom’s she felt nerves pulsing through her veins as they drove through the gates. Veronica wasn’t new to the world of wealth and fortune, but she still found herself in awe of this home. It was every big as grand as the other house Jason had taken her to. The only difference was this home had the four members of the Blossom family waited for her on the front steps. When Smithers had helped her out of the vehicle, Veronica wore her brightest smile as she walked over to greet the rest of Jason’s family. It was obvious that there was someone missing. Veronica had never met Cheryl but even she could feel the void in the family unit.

“Veronica Lodge. We finally meet.” Penelope said to her. Veronica wasn’t entirely sure what tone she was using. It wasn’t warm but at the same time it wasn’t menacing or uninviting either.

“Your home is beautiful, Mrs Blossom.” She said to the woman in return.

“Thank you.” Clifford responded, wanting to make his presence known.

Veronica smiled at the man before her attention went to Jason who had moved to her side and wrapped his arm around her. “Thanks for doing this.” He whispered, pressing a kiss to her hair.

“Come in, come in.” Penelope said as she reached to open the front doors. “I’m sure you’re used to luxuries like this. Unlike that Cooper girl.” She commented as they all walked in.

Clifford helped his mother in doors as Penelope took charge, leading the young couple in. She wasn’t sure how to feel about her son dating a Lodge, but at least Veronica came from a family of wealth. She didn’t want her children marrying into a family of commoners.

After touring around the ginormous home, Penelope took the young couple outside to where her husband, and mother in law were seated in the garden.

“Do you drink, Veronica?” Clifford asked the girl as he instructed the maid to open a bottle of wine.

“Only in good company.” Veronica answered as she took a seat.

Clifford laughed joyously. He liked that answer a lot. “So not today then?” He joked, which made the girl smile in amusement.

“Maybe just this once.” She joked in return.

Jason grinned as he sat down. He liked that his parents didn’t immediately hate the girl he had brought home. They still didn’t like Polly despite her always being so polite and trying her best to fit in.

* * *

“Unfortunately,” Sister Woodhouse said as she sat opposite the two teenagers in her office. “Your sister Polly’s stay here wasn’t meant to be.” She said. “It had all been arranged. Your father brought the troubled girl here as scheduled, but she did not stay the night. We haven’t seen her since her admission.”

“My father?” Betty asked.

The grey-haired woman nodded once. “Wonderful man. A friend if you will.” She said with a smile.

“So my dad was the one who brought Polly here. Not my mother?” She questioned, giving Jughead a concerned look.

“That is correct. I never saw your mother.” She confirmed, watching the two as they glanced between one another in confusion. Alice having no involvement just raised further questions. Where did Hal take Polly, and why did he change his mind? What was Alice and FP hiding if it wasn’t this?

The teens left the facility feeling more confused than they had been walking in. The eerie feeling never left Betty as they walked outside ready to wait for the next bus. She didn’t know what it was about this place that gave her the creeps, but she could have sworn she felt a chill in the air as they walked away.

“What do they do with the babies?” Jughead asked as they made it to the end of the street.

“I don’t know.” Betty said quietly. All she knew was that she didn’t trust this place. She didn’t even know if what Sister Woodhouse told her was the whole truth, or the truth at all.

* * *

Things had run so smoothly that Veronica should have known the other shoe was going to drop sooner or later.

Penelope had made yet another comment about Polly and it had been the final straw for Jason who turned into someone else entirely.

“Nobody is ever good enough for you!” He snapped at the woman. He didn’t mean to imply anything about Veronica, and this afternoon had gone quite well so the girl wasn’t entirely sure if that had all been an act or if he was still too caught up with Polly to remember he was trying to date someone new.

“Oh Jason, dear, dear Jason. That simply is not true.” Penelope insisted, unimpressed but not surprised by his outburst. Veronica was actually impressed with how calm she was being. If someone yelled at her like that her reaction would be quite different.

“Son you should watch yourself.” Clifford said from his own place at the table.

Jason really did need to calm himself down. It would have been wise for him to step away until he was feeling up to another family interaction but of course the boy stayed put.

“And if I don’t what are you going to do? Send me away like you were going to do to Cheryl? Lock me in the basement?” He snapped, looking directly at his mother who was the culprit accused of such crimes.

“That is enough!” Clifford snapped, standing up from his place in fury. Jason had no right to make such accusations, especially not in the presence of company.

Jason looked up at the man with fire in his own eyes. He was angry and his father matched his feeling. He didn’t say anything further, he just stared across at the man who raised him, fists clenched as he tried to keep himself from saying anything else. He didn’t want Veronica to hate him, which was a fresh thought he had previously forgotten to factor in. He knew now he had said too much in front of her, but he couldn’t take it back.

“Perhaps you should call your driver.” Clifford suggested to Veronica without taking his eyes off of his son.

Veronica reached into her purse to find her phone. She didn’t want to interfere in this testosterone filled battle for dominance.

“I would suggest Jason take you home, but he doesn’t have a car.” Penelope said in a sinister tone. She wore a satisfied smile as that very punishment seemed to thrill her in the moment.

This was the first time Veronica realised her mother may have been right in her judgement of this family. It had all flipped rather quickly, from the start they seemed almost happy as a family unit, but now she could have sworn they all hated one another.

* * *

Betty walked herself home from the bus after it had dropped her and Jughead back in town. The boy was headed in the opposite direction, so they had said their goodbyes shortly after arrival. She walked herself home, opting to be alone with her thoughts rather than listening to music like she knew Archie and Jughead liked to do. She made it to Elm Street the same time Archie was walking back up his driveway. “Hey Arch!” She called out to stop him before he could reach the front door.

“Haven’t seen you in a while. Everything okay?” She asked, slipping her hands into her pockets.

Archie ran his fingers through his hair and flashed the girl a smile. Her eyes lingered on the patch of skin that revealed itself as his shirt lifted up ever so slightly.

“Never been better, Betty.” He told her, feeling like he was on cloud nine.

Betty laughed in surprise. “Well can’t complain about that.” She said with a smile.

“No you cannot Betty Cooper.” He agreed, turning back toward his house. “I’ll see you soon.” He said, looking at her again for a second.

Betty nodded. “See you.” She said before turning toward her own house. Her mother’s car was nowhere in sight, but there in the driveway sat her father’s car.

* * *

Toni was cleaning up the kitchen when the trailer door opened. She expected it to be FP who had been gone all day, but instead it was Alice Cooper.

“She’s sleeping.” Toni said and Alice nodded her head.

“I appreciate you looking out for her.” She said, feeling a little embarrassed to be saying that. Alice was sure Toni didn’t like her and she had good reason not to. It was just that in times like this it was easy to forget about your own wrongdoings and just treat people the way you should have been treating them from the start. She just hoped it wasn’t too late to try and remedy all of the damage she had done.

“I did it for FP.” She stated, making it clear that she wouldn’t jump at the chance to help Alice for the sake of it. She might consider herself a good person, but she wasn’t that good. “And for the record, she’s a great person. Deserves better than what she’s been given. I hope you know that.”

Alice nodded. “I do know that. Why else do you think she’s here?” She asked. There was no reason for her to turn to FP for help unless she desperately needed it and, in this case, it wasn’t just about her. It was the girl asleep in the other room who deserved so much better than she had ever been given. Money can’t fix everything, and this was a clear example of that.

“I just hope you really mean that Mrs Cooper.” Toni said earnestly.

Alice did mean it. She knew that she needed to do better by a lot of people. She just really prayed it wasn’t too late.

She walked toward the bedroom, deciding she didn’t care if she was asleep. Alice just needed to see her daughter.

She pushed the door open and let herself in. Polly laid on the bed in the dark room, arms wrapped around one of the pillows. Alice watched her for a moment, her heart aching as she did so. She closed the door behind herself and walked across to the bed. She was careful as she laid down behind her eldest daughter and delicately wrapped an arm around her. She just needed everything to be okay. That’s all she cared about now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you think of this chapter? Was that what you were expecting? Let me know.


	7. Flashback #1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was a saying that Alice always remembered from childhood. If the trailer was rocking, don’t come knocking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the first of two flashbacks in this fic.

_It was summer. School was out, and the sun was hotter than ever. Polly Cooper spent her days lounging by the pool with her boyfriend, or spending afternoons in airconditioned malls with Cheryl and the girls. Being at home as little as possible was the girl’s only summer goal and she had been quite successful in it too. The Cooper house was often empty during those hot summer days. Betty was off doing an internship, Alice and Hal were working hard both trying to not kill each other, and to keep the family business afloat. Her family being busy made it so much easier for Polly to get away with being absent for most of the warmest season. Everything seemed to be going perfect for her, for once. She partially credited being away from the insanity that was the Cooper family, and the rest of her credit fell on the Blossom siblings who became her lifelines. Some may say that wasn’t such a good thing but to Polly it felt perfect. _

_It didn’t last as one could guess. Alice Cooper would tell you she saw that coming a mile off, but Alice Cooper didn’t know, and Polly would prefer it stayed that way for as long as possible. Polly loved her mother, of course she did. They just had many differing opinions, for example Polly believed Alice was trying to ruin her life and Alice wholeheartedly disagreed. It was the fun little disagreements like that which made the world go around. Being pregnant at 16 wasn’t something either of the pair ever wished for Polly to be, which was why the girl knew she couldn’t tell Alice. She would sooner have her mom think she was having a fat year than tell her she was pregnant. She hadn’t told anyone other than the private pages of her journal in fear of Alice finding out and demanding she never see Jason again. It wasn’t like it was his fault. They were both responsible for this slight mix-up. She wasn’t on birth control because that would require her parents knowing she was having sex, another mortifying detail she would rather never mention. Her being pregnant was going to change everything between herself and her parents and Polly wasn’t ready for that. _

_It was becoming too much for the poor girl, keeping this massive secret to herself. The weight of it was a burden on Polly’s soul, which is why she felt like she needed to burst. Betty would merely suggest they tell Alice, which was something Polly didn’t like about her younger sister. She loved Betty, they were once two peas in a pod, but Polly matured faster than she had, or at least that’s what the teen believed. She was convinced that Betty was still a child, just because the younger of the two sisters lacked experience like she had. Polly was drinking at 14, kissing boys around the same time. She thought that made her grown, but the reality was something Polly wasn’t ready to hear. Now the girl was having sex and watching movies she wasn’t old enough for. She would sneak out to meet her boyfriend, smoke and steal her mother’s clothes and jewellery. Polly and Betty were worlds apart lately but Polly’s assumption that this made Betty the immature one wasn’t even half of the truth. _

_It was the beginning of July when Polly felt the inkling to spill her guts. The one person she believed to be on her side no matter what, was Hal Cooper. The girl thought her father was her safest option as a confidant, but that, although not her first mistake, was something she would learn to regret. _

* * *

_Veronica Lodge hadn’t been home when everything she had ever known about her family came crashing down. It was all over the news before her mother was able to get a hold of her. She had been spending time with a boy, one who told her to leave when the news broke. She rushed back to her penthouse in the hopes that this was all just a bad dream. She hadn’t been aware that this had been set in motion for a while, and that Hiram Lodge hadn’t been caught off guard when it came to his arrest. _

_Hermione was sitting at the dining table, a glass of wine in her hand while the half empty bottle accompanied her at the table. She looked up as her daughter frantically rushed in. _

_“Did he do it? Did Daddy steal from those people?” She asked, tearstained cheeks raw from the car ride home. She was already getting abusive messages in her inbox, and her Instagram follower count was plummeting. _

_Hermione finished her mouthful before slamming her wine glass down on the table. “Of course he did.” She answered, voice sounding like venom pulsed through her veins. _

_Veronica’s shaky breath fell from her lips. She didn’t know what this feeling was because up until now she thought her life was perfect. She fit in here, everyone in her circle was rich, coming from powerful families. She had everything anyone could ever wish for, and yet it was all just one lie after another. _

_“Everybody hates me.” She said in a small voice._

_Hermione wasn’t maternal like she should be. It just wasn’t in her. She watched the girl as she cried, and inside of her Hermione wished she was the type of mother who could wipe her daughter’s eyes and tell her it would all be okay. She wasn’t, and it wouldn’t._

_“Pack your bags.” She told the girl. “We’re moving.” She decided. _

* * *

_A lot could happen over the course of one summer night. In New York City, one family’s life changed forever, in Riverdale several families were business as usual. Alice didn’t know where Jughead was, but FP had assured her that the boy wouldn’t be home this very evening. She took his word for it, which was a smart decision as Jughead no longer called the trailer park his home. _

_There was a saying that Alice always remembered from childhood. If the trailer was rocking, don’t come knocking. _

_She laughed to herself as she recalled that musing, but her laughter was interrupted with a moan that distracted her thoughts entirely. It wasn’t often that she found herself bent over a kitchen table, serpent having his way with her from behind. They still had most of their clothes on, old habits die hard. This was the only way she let him do it. It was less intimate than facing each other, and kissing wasn’t something they did anymore. She felt heat pulsing through her as he continued to thrust his hips harshly against her body. She rocked harshly against the surface of the table. The discomfort somehow made her enjoy it more. She didn’t want to be the kind of woman who had sex with her trailer trash ex, but that’s who she was. She didn’t know how to stop. FP was like a drug. This had originally started off as a one-off moment of weakness, but as things grew strained with her and Hal, and as Gladys’ divorce papers arrived, Alice found herself getting drawn to the man in a way that made her feel sick with herself. Not because he disgusted her, but because she couldn’t stand being without him for too long. _

_FP groaned out, nails digging into the flesh of her thighs. She wore a loose-fitting skirt today, which was easier for him and he appreciated it. _

_“I have to go soon.” Alice told him between groans. _

_He didn’t mind that because he knew it wouldn’t be long before she knocked on his door again. They’d done this same dance all summer. He didn’t know what it meant just yet, but they’d never been good with communication. When Alice was ready to tell him what she wanted then he’d be ready to comply. For now all he wanted to focus on was getting off, and that he did. _

_He pulled back and went to clean himself up a little. Alice wriggled her hips as she pulled her underwear back up to their rightful place. She fixed herself up to look presentable and turned toward FP who had done the same. _

_“We probably shouldn’t keep doing this.” She told him as she looked down at her feet. They both knew that she said this every time out of habit, and she didn’t really mean it._

_“Probably not.” He whispered as he stepped closer to her. _

_Alice looked up at the man. He was standing so close that she could smell his familiar scent. It was a mixture of faint leftover aftershave, with his natural musk. She liked it, even though she wished she didn’t. _

_“I’m married.” She reminded the man. She felt for sure that he was going to kiss her, or at least try to. She needed to stop that before either one of them caught real feelings. They were both kidding themselves if they thought this was just sex, but for now that lie needed to be considered truth. She had a family, and FP was trying to get his back. They needed to just keep things simple instead of making it messier. _

_“I know.” He said softly. He hated that about her, but he couldn’t do a darn thing to change it. _

_She placed a hand gently against his chest. It wasn’t a huge gesture, but it was something. He could see she was trying to reach out and for Alice it was actually a big deal. They’d been filled with so much pain and frustration for so many years, and this was a step in the right direction. “You sure you don’t want dinner before you go?” He asked her again._

_Alice shook her head. “No, Betty’s bringing us home something. I should already be in the car.” She told him softly. Her hand dropped down to her own body before she turned to gather her things. _

_FP ran his fingers through his hair and nodded. “If you need anything, just give me a call. Alright?” _

_Alice let out a soft laugh. “I don’t think I will, but same goes for you…within reason.”_

_He groaned. She might be less of a pain in his ass lately, but Alice still held on firmly to her grudge against the southside. “Night Alice.”_

_He walked her out and watched as she rushed out of the trailer park in a hurry. He just hoped she got home in one piece._

* * *

_“Thank you for confiding in me Polly.” Hal Cooper said as he sat processing the information his daughter had just confessed to him. His eldest child was with child, and that was a lot for him to mull over. He knew they needed a solution, one that was quick and easy. He knew Alice should be left out of this discussion, she was too emotional and would let her feelings interfere with the choice that needed to be made, the one that was best for all of them. _

_“I can take you to a clinic. I am aware of one in Greendale that is quite discreet. Nobody needs to know about your indiscretions Polly. I am here to protect you.” He promised. He reached out to take the girl’s hand, but Polly wasn’t nearly as responsive as he expected._

_In fact, the girl sat there feeling her heart sink when she realised what her father meant in his remedy of her situation. She didn’t know what she wanted to do until he decided for her, and she came to the realisation that what Hal expected of her was not what she wanted to do.   
“I-I don’t want to terminate, Dad.” She said with a shake of her head._

_Hal shook his head. “Polly, I know this is your problem, but I am an adult, I know you and I know what is best for you. One day you’ll thank me for helping you make the right choice.” He said to her._

_Polly pulled her hand away from him. “No. That’s not what I want. I don’t want to do that, and you can’t make me do that Dad, you can’t.” She insisted, tears welling in her eyes as she spoke. _

_Hal let out an incredulous sigh. “Polly. We’ll talk about this in the morning when you’ve had time to think it over, and after you’ve had a sleep to clear your head.”_

_It was clear to Polly that her father had made his mind up and that scared her. She didn’t want him making this choice for her. She didn’t know if she wanted to be a mother, or if adoption was something she wanted to consider, but she definitely wasn’t interested in an abortion. She never knew that about herself until the time came. She didn’t have anything against the procedure, she just didn’t think it was the right choice for herself. _

_Hal stood up and looked down at the girl. “Your sister brought dinner and your mother will be home soon. Wipe your face. We’ll talk tomorrow.” He said before leaving the girl to sort herself out. He had hoped Polly would have agreed with him sooner, but she didn’t seem to be ready for persuasion yet. If all else failed he had another option up his sleeve, however that one would be harder to keep from his wife. _

* * *

_It was later that very same evening when Jason Blossom tiptoed out of his bedroom with the intention of leaving his home. He had plans to meet up with his girlfriend who had messaged him, desperate to see him. He never gave up on a chance to spend more time with her. The boys on the football team had no idea how much Polly actually meant to him. He downplayed it to seem cooler, but Jason was almost certain that one day Polly would be his bride. His parents would hate it, but he didn’t care. If somehow, they made him choose between them and Polly, he would walk away from it all. That was something nobody would believe. He loved his wealth, and all of the privileges that came from it, but he loved his girlfriend too. _

_He made it outside without getting caught. He hadn’t run into Cheryl who unknown to him was practicing in the art of escapism just like he was. The two never crossed paths which wasn’t that hard to believe considering the size of their residence. He was careful not to make too much noise as he walked across the courtyard to get his car. The barn light was on, which was peculiar for this time of night. Clifford Blossom wasn’t a stranger to conducting business during the evenings, but Jason wasn’t aware of anything partaking this particular evening. His nosiness got the better of him as he walked over to take a peek. _

_Unlike what he had first suspected, there wasn’t a mystery buyer in the barn with his father. It was someone more sinister than any drug pusher. There stood his mother in her silk robe, curlers in her hair. He couldn’t hear what she was saying so he needed to get closer in order to overhear what she was ranting and raving about. _

_“It is despicable!” Penelope informed her husband as she paced from side to side. She was in quite a state and Clifford wasn’t entirely sure what to make of it. He knew Penelope had her view of the world, and he had his own. They often times matched up, but this time he wasn’t sure of what he could say to remedy the situation. “That girl comes into our home, where we allowed her to eat, and rest her head on our satin pillows.” She said in disgust._

_Jason felt rage bubble through him as he assumed, they were discussing Polly again. He was deciding whether or not to interfere, make himself known and give them a piece of his mind, but he didn’t get that far._

_“That thing putting her hands on our Cheryl.” Penelope said, shaking her head. “She corrupted her. No child of ours would partake in anything so vile.” She said, looking up at her husband who wasn’t doing much in the way of calming her down. Men were useless. She already knew this fact, but in this particular moment Clifford was reminding her. _

_“Penelope, she will grow out of this phase, I assure you.” Clifford said to her gently. “No lesbian has ever inherited the Blossom fortune, and they won’t start now.” _

_Penelope nodded her head. “I remember cousin Agatha.” She recalled. “She wasn’t even a natural red head.”  
_

_Clifford chuckled. “Cheryl would never choose a girl over money. It’s not in her nature. I’ll make the appropriate adjustments to our wills.” He told his wife. _

_Jason didn’t know what to make of what he was hearing. He wasn’t aware of Cheryl having an interest in girls, or why his mother would oppose it so greatly. He thought it was quite disgusting that their father would change his will to make sure Cheryl wouldn’t inherit anything if she was gay. He was sure that wasn’t even legal. When the conversation seemed to be winding down, he made a break for it. He pushed his car to the gate before starting the engine so he could leave to meet Polly. He made a mental note to warn Cheryl when he got back, because as far as he knew the girl was fast asleep in her bedroom. _

* * *

_The Blossom siblings both had the same idea. Although luckily Cheryl skipped out on hearing her mother’s meltdown or her father’s evil plans. She managed to sneak up just as easily as her brother had. She drove down the quiet and dimly lit streets of Riverdale with the intention of meeting up with the girl who owned her heart. She hadn’t intended on driving down the street one of her teachers lived in. The last thing she expected was to bring her car to a screaming halt so she could snap a picture of Archie Andrews embracing the woman on her doorstep. She didn’t know what she was going to do with the photograph, but it would come in handy somehow. She didn’t want to make Heather wait too long, so once the photo had been taken, she took off in her convertible and raced off to see her girlfriend. If she had known it might be the last time, she saw her, maybe she wouldn’t have stopped to spy on the boy, but that was one thing she couldn’t undo, and only one of the regrets made that week in Riverdale. _


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Happy? Parents being happy isn’t something anyone wants to think about.” Josie interrupted after overhearing their conversation. “My mom had a hickey last night. My dad is out of town and they’ve been separated forever. So who is she getting hickey’s from?” She asked, shaking her head in disbelief.

Jason glanced anxiously at the notification on his screen. He clicked on the tiny x in the corner and watched it disappear. He knew it wasn’t gone, and tomorrow it would be replaced with yet another threatening message. He had no idea who kept sending him these texts, and who was out there threatening to give his secret away, but it was something he couldn’t allow anyone to know it was troubling him. He felt like his whole life had been practise for this. He had been raised a Blossom and Blossoms never showed when they were fearful. They always put on a brave face and made sure everyone else knew they were at the top of the food chain. This particular morning had been quite frustrating and intense in the Blossom household. Their attorney had been around, and Jason couldn’t help but involve himself in the situation. They were discussing the possibility of Cheryl being dead. It had been quite some time since she had gone missing and although logically it made sense to assume the worst may have happened, Jason didn’t particularly like the way his parents seemed to be handling this situation with an unmistakable relief. He knew they didn’t approve of his sister’s orientation, but she was still their child. He didn’t understand how any of this could be easy on them, and changing their will so soon seemed rash for the grieving parents they wanted the town to perceive them as.

He had lived through the TV appearances, and the print journalists coming in and out of the home like it had revolving doors, and now that the hype was over, they were acting like their old selves again. He didn’t make a scene in front of the lawyer, but when the short grey-haired man made his exit, Jason had comments to be made. “Bit hasty, aren’t we?” He asked his mother. He knew the woman had a soft spot for him and Clifford used to favour Cheryl more often than not, but it didn’t mean he had to be nice to her when she was acting like this.

Penelope pursed her lip and placed a hand on her hip. “What is it in which you are referring to, Jason?” She asked him.

The boy shook his head at her attitude. “Maybe wait until there’s a body before pretending you never had a daughter.” He suggested.

She reached out in anger, grabbing his face in a harsh manner. “Don’t you speak to me like that you ungrateful brat.” She said behind gritted teeth.

Penelope had never once laid a finger on Jason. He was unaware that Cheryl didn’t have the same experience of it being an unfamiliar occurrence.

When the woman realised exactly what she had just done, her arm dropped to her side in shock. “Jason-,” she uttered softly. “I’m sorry.”

He ran his fingers over the skin she had just touched. He could still feel the sensation of her nails imprinted into his face. He didn’t know what to say or how to react. All he could think of was how Cheryl was gone, and he was stuck with Penelope on his own. This wasn’t the plan he and Cheryl had made the day she went missing, and he wished he could go back and change everything, maybe his girlfriend and sister wouldn’t be gone, and he could resume pretending his home life wasn’t so ugly.

* * *

FP wasn’t expecting anyone, so it was definitely a surprise when his son showed up before school with his belongings. He sprung out of his seat. “Jug, what are you doing here?” He asked, moving toward the front door. He couldn’t exactly hide the pregnant girl who was sitting at the kitchen table with him, the trailer was too small for that.

“I came to move back in.” Jughead said, eyes narrowing as he looked across at the ‘missing’ Cooper girl. “Good to know Betty was right about you being involved with Polly’s disappearance.” He said in disapproval.

FP sighed. “I can explain.”

Jughead shook his head and discarded his bags. “We already know Hal was taking her to the Sisters of Quiet Mercy.” He informed his father as he sat down to help himself to the leftover food that hadn’t been eaten yet.

“Hal?” FP asked, a little surprised to hear his son was on a first name basis with Alice’s husband.

“I figured formal names are for people who deserve respect. I have none for him.” Jughead said, looking across at Polly. “No offence.”

Polly shook her head and rested her hands upon her pregnant belly. She had only started showing quite recently. Most people might assume she had just gained a few, but everyone in the room knew differently. “I agree.”

Jughead chuckled, he felt better about his response.

“Does Alice know you’ve been poking around in this business?” FP asked. He took his phone from his pocket to see if she had tried to call.

“Alice?” Jughead said teasingly. He was giving his father a taste of his own medicine.

FP rolled his eyes. “Smart ass.”

“I don’t believe she knows anything about it. Hal came home last night, Betty told me.” Jughead reported between mouthfuls of scrambled eggs.

FP sighed. They had been waiting for Hal to come home and for the ball to drop. There was no way that man was unaware that Polly wasn’t where he left her, and it was only a matter of time before he figured it out.

“You don’t tell Betty about her sister being here. I’ll talk to Alice, she can tell Betty. It’ll be better coming from her.” FP decided. He really didn’t want his kid involved in this. That was the last thing he wanted but Jughead walked right into it and the least he could do is prevent him from getting in over his head. He would put a stop to his son’s involvement as best as he could.

“Yes Sir.” Jughead responded.

* * *

“It’s nice to see you again Betty.” Hal said from behind his coffee mug. Betty had hoped that she wouldn’t have another encounter with her father. The night before had been awkward while she had waited for her mom to get home. Knowing that her dad was a part of sending Polly away to some unwed mothers religious program was something that made her view him entirely differently.

“You too dad.” Betty said in an attempt to act normal. She sat at the table with a bowl of cereal in front of her. “Hopefully Polly will be back soon too.” She said, mostly to test the waters.

Hal nodded. “That would be nice.”

Betty glanced over at her mother who was still in the kitchen brewing her tea.

“When will that be again, Dad?” She asked curiously.

Hal set his mug down and flipped the page of his newspaper. “Not sure Honey.”

Alice was listening into this interaction. It was a good thing she was keeping her distance, or else Hal might notice something was making her feel uneasy. She walked in to the dining room a few minutes later after the conversation had dulled.

Betty watched her mother who still hadn’t told her anything about Polly. She wondered if her mother even knew where the girl was.

“You know, Hal. I’ve been talking to Charles’ father recently.” Alice said casually.

The man turned his face toward her instantly. “Excuse me?” He asked, wondering if he had heard her correctly.

“Who is Charles?” Betty asked, confused by this conversation and it had barely begun.

“The baby I gave up for adoption when I was Polly’s age.” Alice said, watching her daughter. She had her reasons for mentioning it. She just hoped it wasn’t a mistake to speak of it in front of Betty.

“Alice!” Hal hissed. “We said we would never speak of that, especially in front of the girls.”

Alice shrugged. “Well I just did. I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. I think about the Sisters, and how they helped me…”

Betty looked between her parents and realised what her mother was playing at. She was trying to con Hal into confessing his part in sending Polly away.

Hal shook his head. “You shouldn’t be thinking about that or discussing it outside of this house.”

Alice took a sup from her tea. “So, I should invite his father over to discuss it in this house?” She asked sarcastically.

“No! You are being ridiculous Alice. I’ve been home less than 24 hours and all you’ve done is talk nonsense about being with another man. Think about my feelings for once.” He said righteously.

Alice looked across at Betty. “I’ll drive you to school today Honey.” She said to her in a sweet tone. She wanted to speak to the girl somewhere they wouldn’t be at risk of Hal eavesdropping.

“She is within walking distance Alice, let the girl get her exercise. She never was athletic. It’ll be good for her.” Hal said in annoyance.

Alice simply rolled her eyes. “I have errands to run. It’s on my way.” She told him as she moved from her seat.

Betty was finished with her breakfast anyway, so Alice took it to rinse it out. Betty took this time to get herself ready for school. She met her mother out in the car, looking forward to grilling her in the short car ride. She had so many questions her head felt like it was spinning.

FP’s text had warned Alice that her daughter knew more than she was letting on. That’s why she knew it was worth the risk with Hal.

She didn’t speak until they had left the driveway. “Polly isn’t with the Sisters.” She told her youngest child. “I wasn’t going to let him do to her as he did to me.”

Betty nodded her head. It was a hell of a lot to process. Her mother had a son, Betty had a brother somewhere that she never knew about. “Wait, when you said you have been talking to Charles’ father, you meant-,”

“FP.” Alice nodded. “I never told him. Not until this summer when I needed his help with Polly. We intercepted the night she was admitted. Took her out through the tunnel I used to sneak out of at night.”

“Wow.” Betty said in surprise.

“I know it’s a lot to process, but I know you’ve been digging into this Betty. I just thought you’d have uncovered things sooner.” She admitted.

Betty laughed in shock. “I thought you hated me being nosy.”

Alice chuckled warmly. “Only because you remind me of myself. Which isn’t such a great thing.”

  
“It’s not such a bad thing either.” Betty reassured her.

Alice placed a hand on her daughter’s knee. “Polly has been staying with FP at his trailer, if you wanted to visit her. I think she’d really like that.”

Betty nodded. “I would too.”

* * *

It seemed Elm Street, and Riverdale in general was full of family reunions this week. Archie woke up to a surprise visitor in the form of Mary Andrews who had flown in from Chicago for Archie’s first football game of the season. She was a few days early but that was on purpose she wanted to spend some quality time with the boy who she didn’t get to see all that often, and to Fred’s surprise she had brought someone with her this visit.

After an emotional greeting the two redheads went downstairs to where Fred was dishing up breakfast for the four of them.

“Archie, I’d like you to meet Cassandra, my girlfriend.” Mary introduced proudly.

Archie’s eyes followed his mother’s gesture toward the woman sitting at the breakfast table. He didn’t know what he had been expecting when his parents started dating other people but this sure wasn’t it.

xxx

“So your mom’s gay?” Kevin asked Archie as they sat in the student lounge together, accompanied by Betty and Jughead who kept whispering about something Kevin couldn’t quite make out.

Archie shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess so.”

“She has a girlfriend. I think that counts.” Jughead mused. He had one hand in his bag of potato chips, the other anxiously playing with the back of the couch as his arm rested just above Betty’s shoulders.

“Wow. I’m so glad she’s found someone who makes her happy. That’s great Arch.” Betty said in a chipper tone.

“Happy? Parents being happy isn’t something anyone wants to think about.” Josie interrupted after overhearing their conversation. “My mom had a hickey last night. My dad is out of town and they’ve been separated forever. So who is she getting hickey’s from?” She asked, shaking her head in disbelief.

“The mayor with a secret love bite, that’s the kind of scandal Riverdale would eat right up.” Kevin said as he reached for his phone.

Josie’s eyes narrowed. “Keller, I wouldn’t if I were you.”

The boy let go of his phone to hold his hands up in defence.

“Speaking of scandals, did you hear Jason Blossom and the new girl made it Instagram official?” She asked as she sat down on the empty spot beside Kevin.

“Wait, what?” Betty asked, feeling terrible on behalf of her sister who wasn’t only alive, but right in town this whole time. She took her phone out to check social media, and sure enough there it was, a picture of the two cuddled up, captioned ‘the sweetest boyfriend’

Jughead noticed Betty’s demeanour changed and knew exactly where her mind was at. “She’ll be okay.” He whispered to quietly reassure her.

Betty nodded her head. “Yeah.” She whispered, a forced smile spread across her lips. She knew what it was like to have your heart broken because Archie not being into her was something, she knew deep down in her heart to be the truth. This was much worse than a one-sided crush. Polly was pregnant with Jason’s baby, and this news might just crush her sister’s soul.

* * *

Archie would never forget his first summer romance, his first romance overall. He held so many memories close to his chest and every time he saw the love of his life in the school halls, he felt like he might burst. It wasn’t fair that their age made things forbidden. It only made him desire her even more. He couldn’t tell his friends, or his family and Josie only knew because she accidentally saw them. Unlike Cheryl who used her knowledge to blackmail, Josie was being a true friend and Archie appreciated that.

He was with Grundy after school when Archie felt like the earth was shattering around him. He felt for sure that his heart had literally cracked in two. “You can’t leave.” He insisted.

She shook her head. “I don’t want to, but I have to Archie. Things are getting more complicated. You’re too young to understand.”

He frowned. This was a habit of hers that he didn’t like. She was always talking about his age and how he was too young to know things. It was the one flaw the woman had that Archie could actually see. “Please stop doing that.” He whispered. “You know I don’t like it when you talk like that.”

“I’m sorry.” She whispered back, reaching out to delicately caress his cheek. “But I still have to go, and you might not understand why now, but one day you will, and you’ll be okay.” She promised. “All I want is for you to be happy.”

“I am happy. You make me happy.” He insisted, puppy dog eyes looking back at her sadly.

“I know.” She nodded. “You make me happy too, but Archie I keep telling you and you have to listen to me. I can’t stay here.”

“Then I’ll come with you. I’m not letting you leave without me.” He decided.

* * *

Alice was right in predicting Polly would be thrilled by a visit from her younger sister. The girls talked and talked, laughed and laughed. The baby was too small to be active, but that didn’t stop Betty placing a protective hand upon her sister’s stomach anyway. FP wasn’t used to having two teenage girls in his home, so he made himself busy so he could stay out of their way.

He was outside cleaning his bike, while Jughead sat with Toni just a few feet away. The pink haired girl had been expressing her concerns regarding Polly. She didn’t trust the Coopers one bit, not even Betty which admittedly was unfair as the girl had never technically done wrong by her.

“You like her, don’t you?” Toni asked suddenly. “That’s why you keep defending her!”

Jughead shook his head. “Shut up.”

She laughed. Toni found it quite amusing actually. “I don’t really blame you. She’s pretty. Not my type, but I do have eyes.”

“What is your type? Thugs like Sweet Pea?” He teased playfully.

Toni’s fist met with his bicep. “That was one time. It was spin the bottle and does not count at all.” She said, crossing her arms in the air as though she was mimicking the America’s Got Talent reject lights.

He laughed, holding his chest as he did so.

“Joaquin then?” He asked after calming down again.

She pulled a face. “I’m not Joaquin’s type.”

Jughead nodded. “Ah…”

* * *

“So, when can I see Jason?” Polly asked her sister excitedly.

Betty frowned. “I don’t think that’s a good idea Pol. Mom’s trying to keep you safe here, and Dad’s back in town. If Jason Blossom suddenly starts hanging around the Southside, that’ll raise red flags..”

Polly shrugged. “I’ll just meet him in the Northside then. I don’t see a problem here Betty.”

Betty let out a sigh. She really hadn’t wanted Polly to find out. The girl didn’t have her cellphone so Betty knew she hadn’t been in contact with anyone and therefore she hadn’t seen the posts yet.

She hesitated before unlocking her phone to find the post she had seen earlier. A newer post had come up since school ended. A picture of Veronica in her newly minted Vixen’s uniform. Jason had posted this particular one, and tagged Veronica as the cutest Vixen of them all.

She handed her phone over to her sister. “He’s moved on, Pol. I’m so sorry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my hand is cramping so hard from writing this. lmao hope you like it. Only five more chapters til the end!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Betty shook her head again. “Stop saying that! Stop lying to me!” She said through gritted teeth, and teary eyes. The more the boy spoke, the more betrayed she felt. Maybe it wasn’t fair to make this all about herself, but she was in pain and it was hard not to do so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 4 more chapters to gooooo. thank you to everyone who has been reading. You are the only people I claim. Let me know what you think of this chapter!

Betty stared wide eyed at the red headed boy sat across from her. She caught a glimpse of her own reflection in the mirror behind him, and it was an understatement to say she looked as shocked as she felt. She sat there frozen, unable to put her feelings into words. Archie had told her he planned to leave town in only a few day’s time. Betty had always assumed that the first time they’d be facing time apart would be when the time came for the two of them, and all of their peers, to head off to various different colleges. This was far too soon. They were only 16. It was too soon.

Archie watched her curiously. He didn’t want to upset the girl. That’s why he wasn’t skipping town without saying goodbye first. “Betty, I know you and I, we’ve been close for so long. That’s why it’s hard for me to say goodbye.” He said with a brief pause. He waited to see if she would say something but the opportunity passed by and Betty was still frozen. “I love you, Betty. You know, that right? We’ve been friends our whole lives. I’ll never forget that.”

That’s just about where Betty lost it. She snapped out of her immobile state feeling as though he had just slapped her clear across the face. “You love me? No you don’t.” She rebutted emotionally. “You don’t care about me Archie, because if you did then you wouldn’t be doing this.” She told him with a shake of her head. She dabbed at her eyes with the sleeves of her light weight cardigan and let out a quiet shaky breath.

Archie felt personally attacked by her reaction. This was because he knew in his heart that Betty meant a lot to him and she was rejecting that for a reason which was unknown to him. “You mean so much to me Betty, but I’m in love. I can’t let her leave without me.” He tried to defend himself the best he could without being mean to the girl.

Betty shook her head again. “Stop saying that! Stop lying to me!” She said through gritted teeth, and teary eyes. The more the boy spoke, the more betrayed she felt. Maybe it wasn’t fair to make this all about herself, but she was in pain and it was hard not to do so.

“I’m not lying Betty!” He insisted, this time raising his voice at her. He didn’t mean to get so worked up but for once he just needed her to listen to what he was saying instead of only hearing what she wanted to.

“Why couldn’t you just love me? What is wrong with me that you’d leave town for some summer fling, when I’ve been right next door this whole time?” She asked him in defeat. She hung her head down and hid her face against her knees which were now firmly pressed against her chest. She didn’t want to look at him while saying these things. She felt like he had ripped her heart out and had no regrets doing so.

There had been so many moments in the past where Betty was able to pretend to herself that Archie loved her back. All she had to do was overthink a smile, or a touch and her head would spin out with possibilities and delusions that Archie might feel the same and be too shy to say something. She knew her mother didn’t approve of her crush but when Betty was with Archie nobody else mattered, until now when she realised and had to actually face up to reality. He didn’t love her, and he never did. She wished he would just say so instead of leading her on. Every time he reinforced their relationship with the word ‘friend’ it felt like a knife going through her heart. It was like torture. She could only imagine how Polly must have felt when Betty had shown her those Instagram updates from Jason and Veronica. Betty regretted making her sister feel this pain, even if it was better than Jason leading her on too. It hurt her to a point where Betty wished she could remain blissfully unaware of the fact Archie saw her as more of a sister than a girlfriend.

Archie didn’t know what he was supposed to say or do. He watched his friend since childhood as she cried because of him. He wondered why it was that way. Maybe if he loved Betty back his life would have been easier, but he couldn’t force feelings for someone. His heart belonged to somebody else, and even when it didn’t, he never returned Betty’s feelings. He wished he did. He really tried. It just wasn’t meant to be. He reached out to touch her arm ever so gently, but Betty pulled away from him. “Please just go, Archie.” She whispered.

Archie stood up and looked around the room. His eyes lingered on his bedroom window which lined up almost perfectly across from hers. He looked back at Betty, feeling like the worst friend in the world. “Have a nice life, Betty Cooper.” He whispered, pressing a kiss to the top of her ponytailed head. He left her sitting there in the privacy of her own room and made sure the door was closed before he left the Cooper house all together.

* * *

Thornhill had been quiet for the last few days. After Penelope had laid her hands upon her favourite child, the woman had been facing the consequences of guilt. It was a shame this was the one thing that made the woman experience such feelings, unlike the disappearance of her only daughter but Jason wasn’t taking it for granted. He knew he had to appreciate small blessings when they came to him. Penelope’s guilt had rewarded him his car back, which he intended to use to take Veronica out at some point, but for now he was settling on meeting her and their friends at Pop’s for burgers and shakes to celebrate their victory against Centreville the night before.

The last person Jason expected to see drive through the gates of his family’s estate was Hal Cooper. He hadn’t seen the man in quite some time yet there he was letting himself in through the front gates as though it were his right to do so. Jason didn’t dream of conversing with the man. Hal never liked him and he imagined he disliked him even more so now that Polly had gotten pregnant by him. The teenager walked across the courtyard and unlocked his own car.

Hal didn’t take much notice of him to begin with. Not until he saw the familiar blue and gold jacket the boy was wearing as he parked behind him. Jason waited until the man had gotten out of his vehicle before started up his engine.

The two exchanged an eerie eyeballing before Jason broke the stare first. He didn’t trust that man and for the life of him he hoped that whatever business Hal Cooper had with his parents, it wouldn’t last very long.

If Jason had stayed a short while longer, he would have found himself feeling all the more disgusted by who Hal had come to see. It wasn’t Clifford like he had first suspected, but the woman who had granted him his privileges back. She opened the door with a warm welcoming smile and lead her friend ‘Harold’ through her not so humble abode. This visit was no business, but depending on who was telling the story, it may not have been pleasure either.

* * *

“Why do you keep glancing toward the door?” Alice asked FP. The man kept turning to check the coast was clear and it had happened enough times in a row to prove quite distracting, if not entirely irritating.

The pair were sitting with a desk between them down at the Register, trying to figure out what their next move was regarding Polly. She couldn’t possibly remain in the trailer forever, it was a recipe for disaster waiting to happen. Hal being back in town certainly complicated things for all of them. The man was nosy, and that was no surprise to anybody considering his chosen profession, but it was quite frustrating for those who were trying to keep secrets from him.

“Sorry.” FP said as he turned his attention back to her. “I just keep thinking Cooper is going to walk right in here and catch us out.” He admitted. It wasn’t like it was an impossibility. The man was back in town and knew the two were in touch again. Alice had filled him in on her attempt to antagonise her husband with their involvement. He wasn’t all too thrilled about being used as a weapon to catch him out with, but he did understand the angle she had been coming from, albeit the attempt being somewhat unsuccessful. He reached into his pocket to take out a fresh stick of gum which he proceeded to put into his mouth.

Alice folded her arms over her chest. “I already told you, he hardly comes into the office anymore especially not on weekends. He thinks I’m a nightmare to work with and he wouldn’t be wrong.” She added the last part just to make the man smile. It didn’t really work but she swore he had a hint of a smile just threatening to poke out.

“I want what’s best for your daughter Al, but I don’t know what your endgame here is. She’s going to pop sooner or later, then you’ll have another kid to hide, and that’s no life for a teen mom or a baby.” He pointed out. This wasn’t an attack. He just needed her to be reminded of how temporary this solution was.

Alice sighed and dropped both hands to the desk in front of her. “I know, I know. We can’t keep her hostage in your trailer for the next five months even if that would be safer than having her roam the streets, shack up with evil nuns or heaven forbid, live under Hal’s roof.” She sighed. The only thing that mattered to her was making sure Polly didn’t have to go through what she did. Polly had expressed that she wanted to keep her baby which was something Alice wanted to uphold and was secretly happy about. There was a mission ahead to take Polly to a free clinic in a nearby town, the location was chosen mostly to avoid Hal finding out, but a visit with a medical professional was needed as soon as possible.

FP ran his thumb over the bridge of his nose as he thought it over. He didn’t have any ideas yet, but he was sure as hell trying to find a solution here. Things were still complicated between himself and Alice but that didn’t mean he was going to half ass this. Polly was a good kid who deserved to have a good life. That Blossom boy was no help running off with Hiram Lodge’s daughter. He had heard all about it as Toni dragged the truth out of the girl that very morning. He liked that Toni had taken on the role of mother hen because he was useless when it came to that kind of thing, and it would be easier pulling teeth than trying to make Jughead talk to her.

Alice unlocked her phone and opened one of her apps. She watched the screen trying to figure out exactly what Hal was currently up to. The man didn’t know his wife was tracking him. This was only a new development. She had installed the discreet app and connected it to his phone number while Hal was taking a shower a few nights prior. She just needed to make sure he wasn’t anywhere near their daughter and thankfully he wasn’t. It did cause her some concern when she realised which side of town he was actually on, and who lived there.

“We need to think of something before Hal tries to use Jason Blossom to lure her out of hiding.” She wouldn’t put it past him to try. She just hoped Polly was right when she said Jason actually loved her.

* * *

Pop’s Diner was busy but that wasn’t unusual for a Saturday afternoon. A group of teenagers sitting up the back were the source for most of the noise, but it wasn’t too rowdy, so the staff didn’t mind so long as they behaved. Hermione Lodge was working behind the counter. Hiram’s assets had been frozen after his arrest and the woman still needed an income while she waited for her share of money to be made available to her again. She didn’t mind the job when it was quiet, but sometimes days like this particular one made her resent her husband for putting her through it.

When Betty Cooper came in the woman recognised her straight away. She had seen the blonde coming in with Fred’s boy a few times, and a boy she would later learn to be FP’s son. She gave the girl a small smile, but Betty wasn’t quite in the mood for politeness. She was hungry and wanted to get some fresh air after crying all morning. She knew Archie wasn’t with the rest of the team because the boy was still in his bedroom when she left hers. She stood back after another waitress took her order and tapped her fingers against the arm across her chest.

“Hey Betty.” Josie greeted. She too was stood aside waiting for a take-out order. She was meeting her mother down at the mayor’s office so they could have lunch together, which hadn’t happened in a long time.

Betty smiled gently and mumbled a hello to the other girl. She wasn’t in the mood for small talk with Josie. After Jason’s party her imagination had run wild with assumptions about the other girl’s relationship with Archie. She was convinced that Josie and Archie were going to run away together to pursue music in some big city far away from here. That’s the fantasy she had concocted up in her room between break downs all day.

“Archie told me that he was going to talk to you this morning.” Josie said, hoping that Betty had talked some sense into him. She was against his idiotic plans to run away but had no idea how to stop him. Everyone knew Betty and Archie were good friends, so she hoped the blonde had done a better job at convincing him to stay.

Betty closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. “I don’t want to talk about that with you.” She said in a frustrated tone.

Josie was slightly caught off guard by Betty’s reaction. She didn’t have any clue that the girl had jumped to all kinds of wrong conclusions about the situation.

“My bad. I just thought you’d have talked him out of it since I sure as hell didn’t.” She said with a shake of her head. This was a reminder as to why she liked to stay out of other folks business.

Betty opened her eyes so she could turn to look at the girl. “Talk him out of it?” She questioned, confused as to why Josie wouldn’t want Archie to leave with her.

“I mean, duh. I don’t think he should waste his life running away with his music teacher. That’s just all kinds of messed up, don’t you think?” Josie asked, raising her eyebrows.

Betty’s mouth dropped open as Josie’s bombshell hit her ears. “His music teacher, as in Grundy?” She asked, feeling like a weight had been lifted for a mere second before another had shifted upon her shoulders.

Josie nodded. “Girl, that boy is in for a world of trouble. I know she’s young but she’s not that young, what does she see in a teenage boy anyway? It’s all kinds of nasty if you ask me..” She felt great to finally be able to express how she actually felt about this. She knew it was wrong to have kept it to herself for this long, but she had always liked Archie, he was nice to everybody. The last thing she wanted was for him to only be nice to her because he didn’t want her to rat him out. That and she wasn’t sure if anyone would actually believe her.

“I have to go.” Betty said, turning toward the door. “You can have my order. I don’t mind.” She told the other girl before she rushed out of the diner. Betty knew she was risking losing Archie forever by going to tell his parents, but the alternative was him leaving town and losing him forever in another way entirely. She needed to do the right thing even if Archie wouldn’t agree with it.

* * *

Josie left the diner with both orders. She didn’t know what Betty liked to eat but she was always appreciative of a free meal from Pop’s. She held the door open for a serpent girl who did appear to be somewhat lost. This was definitely the opposite of serpent territory. The room was filled with bulldogs and vixens, a sea of blue and gold filling booths everywhere.

Toni had never actually been inside. Jughead had asked her to join him on occasion but the girl never took him up on the offer. Jughead wasn’t a serpent and therefore most of his peers never cared that the boy frequented the diner. She wasn’t the same. She wore her serpent jacket proudly and didn’t care who saw it. She just didn’t like causing unnecessary conflict like eating at a northside dinner when there were other places to eat.

Toni stood behind a girl she assumed was at the back of the line. Veronica turned around as she felt a presence behind her. It wasn’t as if the serpent was standing that close, it was just a feeling she had, one that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand tall. She turned around to see who was behind her. Toni hadn’t taken any notice of the northsider in front of her. She was just standing there trying not to look in any direction for too long.

“I. Love. Your boots.” Veronica exclaimed in a chipper voice that brought Toni’s attention forward for the first time.

Her lips upturned when she saw the girl actually seemed genuine and wasn’t putting on one of those fake acts bitchy girls often did to put other girls down with.

“Thanks, my grandpa gave them to me for Christmas, saved up all year and everything.” She said. It was a true story, but the way she spoke it was with caution, as if waiting for the girl to make fun of her for being so poor that her family had to save up all year for a $200 pair of shoes.

Veronica couldn’t relate to that, but it didn’t at all faze her. “Lucky you, they’re stunning. I wish I could pull off boots like that, but unfortunately I inherited Daddy’s tiny ankles.” She pouted.

Toni laughed softly. She wasn’t sure if her laugh came from the imagery of a man with slender ankles, or because this grown girl still called her father ‘daddy’ like she was living in a clichéd teen movie.

“I’m Veronica Lodge.” Veronica introduced, holding her hand out to the serpent girl.

Shaking hands wasn’t a practice Toni was quite used to. In the Southside a friendly nod would suffice. She took Veronica’s hand and let the other girl do all of the hand movements.

“Toni Topaz.” She said after realising Veronica was waiting for some kind of response.

“Oh, like the gemstone?” She asked with intrigue. She finally let go of the other girl’s petite hand, and Toni slid her hands into her jacket pockets.

“I guess so.” She said in amusement.

Veronica’s smile only widened. “Are you here alone? You should come and join us, we’re having a celebration after the big win last night.” She gestured across at the Riverdale High kids.

Toni glanced in their general direction before she shook her head. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. Northside, Southside rivalry and all.” She said in an attempt at putting it mildly. She knew nobody in that corner would welcome her with opened arms. Veronica might be new and naïve, but Toni sure wasn’t. “Thanks though.” She added, not wanting to be rude.

“If you change your mind, you’re welcome to sit with us.” Veronica insisted kindly.

Their interaction didn’t last much longer than that. Veronica’s order didn’t take very long, and she was back with her friends before no time. Toni wouldn’t have stayed even if the diner wasn’t half occupied by northside jocks, and that was because she wasn’t there for herself. She had only come in because Polly was craving one of my favourite meals. She glanced across at the back corner on her way out and noticed Veronica straight away. She stood out and Toni just shook her head and stepped outside and back into the real world.

* * *

The one thing Betty feared the most was Archie being home when she came in to ruin all of his plans. She just didn’t know if she could do it with him standing there. Luckily for her the boy she still felt so strongly about had gone out for a run to clear his head.

When the youngest Cooper knocked on the front door of her neighbour’s home, she didn’t know who to expect at the door. She liked both Fred and Mary, however, she wouldn’t admit this to anyone, but Mary scared her just a little. That didn’t mean she disliked the woman, it was the opposite actually. It just made her admit the attorney even more, although she still had some feelings that weren’t all that kind which were related to the woman moving so far away, and leaving Archie behind but that had been a blessing in disguise for her really.

“Betty! What a lovely surprise.” Mary greeted at the front door. They weren’t expecting visitors today so Mary wasn’t entirely sure who to expect when she heard the knocking. Betty she could handle, it was her parents who would be more difficult to deal with if she was being honest.

“I have to talk to you and Mr Andrews, I’m worried about Archie actually.” Betty told her. She felt bad that this wasn’t a casual visit like Mary probably expected.

Mary lead the girl inside and called out for Fred. Her girlfriend Cassandra was sitting in the living room watching tv. Mary introduced them without needing any detailed explanation. She knew Archie probably already told her about the changes in their family, and Betty was smart enough to fill herself in if not.

Fred appeared downstairs with his glasses on. He had been busy in his room working on the books for his business, leaving the lower half of the house to his soon to be ex wife, and her new lover. “Hi Betty. Nice to see you.” He said with a smile. “You just missed Archie, he’s gone out for a run.” He told her.

Betty shook her head. “Oh that’s okay, I’ll catch him later.” She responded sweetly.

“Betty wants to talk to us about Archie, she has some concerns.” Mary said to get him up to speed.

“I see, how about we sit in the dining room, we’ll have a chat.” He suggested.

* * *

The last thing Archie expected to come home to was to see the sheriff’s car sitting out front of his house. He ran inside expecting the worst, although he wasn’t entirely sure what the worst case scenario would be here. Did his parents know where Cheryl was? Were they hurt? Was he in trouble? He really didn’t know and that’s what scared him. He rushed indoors, sweat stained shirt sending a chill through him as he hit the cold air.

Sheriff Keller had been half way through his important lunch when he had gotten the alarming call. When the teenager came in, all three adults looked up from where they had been sitting, waiting for him. Tom was sat with Archie’s parents after sending Betty home. She had told them all that she knew, and a short phone call with Sierra had confirmed that Josie’s story matched up with hers.

“What’s going on?” Archie asked the three faces who sat there watching him with expressions on their faces that made him feel uneasy.

“Sit down son, we need to talk to you about your teacher.” Fred said gently. He pushed one of the chairs back for Archie, who felt like his world had just came crashing down. He frantically shoved his hand in his pocket to call his girlfriend. He wanted to warn her so maybe she could leave town before getting into any trouble.

“My deputies already took her to the station for questioning, Archie.” Tom told him. He felt bad for the teen, but the law was the law. He became a cop to protect the town, to protect kids like Archie and his son.

Archie gave his parents a look of betrayal before he ran upstairs. He was faster than any of them expected, which was made obvious by the sound of Archie’s bedroom door slamming after no time at all.

“I don’t care how long I have to stay in town to enforce it, but that boy isn’t leaving this house outside of school again.” Mary said firmly. She wasn’t trying to punish her only child, she just wanted to protect him.

Fred placed a hand upon her shoulder to comfort her. He didn’t know what the solution would be, but he knew they’d have to do it together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When this fic is finished Idk what I will write next. I'm so rusty with writing and haven't had a good writing routine in forever but I feel like I could write something else after this. So it might be a sequel (season 2 au) or a completely different idea...what do you think?


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He stared at Jughead, unaware that the question the beanie wearing loner would ask him would cause him to turn as white as a ghost.
> 
> “What happened the night your sister went missing?” Jughead asked.

Josie took a deep breath as she approached the front steps of the Andrews’ residence. Mary had changed her plans and wasn’t flying home as she had originally intended. Her girlfriend had flown home because she couldn’t take off the extra hours from work. Fred’s truck wasn’t out front because the man was still at the job site, which meant Josie only had to worry about one disapproving parent, instead of the both of them. She was aware of the fact that Archie’s parents knew she had prior knowledge of the inappropriate relationship, which had come out because of Betty. She didn’t blame the girl for naming her, Betty was merely telling the truth and all. It did however make things awkward at home. Her mother was the mayor, and that meant Sierra McCoy felt as though it was a great shame to have her own daughter be involved in this situation.

After she had knocked on the front door, the Pussycat took a step back and waited to see if anyone would answer the door. It took a minute or so before Mary opened up and smiled at the girl politely. “Josie, how are you?” She asked sweetly. The woman didn’t know why Josie had come around but she assumed it was to check in on Archie after everything had gone down. The boy hadn’t been to school in a couple of days, he just couldn’t face it. Nobody involved could really blame him for that either.

“I’m good Mrs Andrews, is Archie allowed visitors?” She asked, hanging back a little as she was unsure how this was going to go down.

Mary thought about it before she nodded. “Sure. I don’t know if he’s up for it, but you can go in and see for yourself.” She decided it would be good for her son to see some of his friends. He was upset about his teacher going to prison, and Mary could sympathise with that, but she wasn’t going to let that woman ruin her son’s life forever. He needed to get back into the real world sooner or later, and baby steps like this were only going to help in the long run.

“Thank you, Mrs Andrews.” Josie said in relief. She followed the woman inside. Mary showed her to the staircase and directed her on how to get to her son’s room.

Archie’s curtains were closed, the darkness of his bedroom was only broken by the dull light coming from the opened door as Josie stood in the doorframe. His fingers stopped strumming when he saw her, but he didn’t let go of his guitar. “What are you doing here?” He asked her in a low voice. He had never felt like this before, his whole body felt so heavy as though his heartache was weighing him down. His eyes were raw from being unable to sleep, and Josie stuck her nose up at the smell that lingered in the air.

“I came to see you.” She said gently. “See how you’re doing after everything.”

Archie set his guitar down and scooted his body off the side of his bed.

“I’m fine.” He told her with a slight shrug. He clearly wasn’t but there wasn’t anything anyone could do to change that now.

Josie took a couple of steps forward, venturing further into the boy’s room. She hadn’t been inside a boy’s bedroom before, at least not since elementary school which felt like a life time ago. “Look, Archie. I didn’t mean for all of this to go down the way it did. I hope you know that.” She said, watching him to try and gage some kind of reaction so she knew what he was thinking.

“I know.” He said with a shake of his head. “But Betty did.” He said, hand outstretched and pointed in the direction of his neighbour’s bedroom. “She’s in love with me or something, that’s why she did this.” He said in frustration. “Like if she can’t be happy, then nobody else can either.”

Josie shook her head. “That’s not what Betty intended. Okay? I know you aren’t ready for this conversation but I’m going to have it with you anyway.” She said firmly. “Archie, Miss Grundy was your teacher, not your girlfriend. There are laws against this for a reason. Teachers are meant to teach, not lure teenagers into sleeping with them.” She said, eyes remaining on the boy as she said every word. “You’re not the first, but you might be the last boy she ever does this to. My mom and the sheriff looked into this woman, Grundy isn’t even her real name. She does this at every school she’s taught at. Hell, she probably had other boys on the side right here in Riverdale.” She shook her head at the thought of the woman leading on other boys in the area. The thought of it made her sick. “You can be mad at me for telling Betty, or mad at Betty for telling your parents, but Archie we did it because we care about you and you can sit here feeling sorry for yourself for the rest of your days, or you can face the pain and learn from it. That’s up to you, but don’t you blame Betty for something she didn’t do.”

Archie watched the girl. He was at a loss for words because nobody had ever talked to him that way before. He didn’t say anything because a part of him was unsure if she had even finished her speech.

Josie let out a sigh. “I should have done something sooner, but I was scared to speak up. Maybe Betty does love you, but that isn’t a flaw here Archie, she cares. I care. You should think about the people who care about you instead of mourning the loss of someone who never did.”

* * *

Pop’s Diner wasn’t the only place local teens liked to spend their time. If you ran in the serpent circle, you’d probably spend your afternoons and weekends down at the Wyrm playing pool, and drinking imitation beer, if you were a Northsider you’d have more options, that included but wasn’t limited to the diner itself, but the one place everyone in Riverdale had in common was the Twilight Drive In The drive in was always booming on a Saturday night, which was why Jason insisted Veronica finally have her first Drive In experience this particular weekend. She didn’t have any other plans so of course this was how she wanted to spend her evening. Hermione had shared with her a memory or two about her own history with the venue, some of which the youngest Lodge wished she never had to hear.

Betty Cooper had opted out of going to see a movie, it was partially because she didn’t have a car or many friends to go with. Archie still wasn’t speaking to her, and Kevin was going with a date. Instead her plan was a lot more chilled out. She was going to watch a movie in the Jones’ trailer with Jughead and her sister. It seemed more her speed, and although Jughead loved the drive in, he was keen for a night in with the two Cooper girls, or one girl in particular.

FP had cleared out for the evening. Jughead didn’t really know where the man was going. He had been disappearing a lot lately. If he hadn’t already learnt otherwise, he would have assumed the man was sneaking off with Alice. That wasn’t the case however, since everything his father wasn’t accounted for, Betty knew exactly where her mother was. He sat down on the sofa and made himself comfortable as Betty struggled to make popcorn in their dodgy microwave. He had told her it wouldn’t be a perfect result but she insisted she didn’t mind so he left her to it. He was just grateful the girl had brought snacks at all. Toni usually showed up expecting him to feed her on their movie nights. It had been a while since they’d had any, because his parents had gotten rather messy in the end and he stopped inviting anyone over. Even after his mother had skipped town, Jughead rarely had anyone around then, not even Toni who had seen the good, the bad, and the downright ugly in his household.

When Betty came in with the snacks she set the bowl of popcorn down first, before she laid out an assortment of confectionary for them to nibble on. “Polly said she’s not feeling well. Probably nausea from the baby.” Betty said as she sat down next to him.

Jughead nodded. “That’s okay. She can watch next time.” He said with a smile.

Betty smiled back at him. “Of course. She loves movies, must be feeling really bad if she’s skipping it.”

* * *

The truth was Polly didn’t feel poorly at all. She just knew tonight was her one shot of freedom. Her father was out of town again which was confirmed by the app on her mother’s phone, so it was safe to say that leaving the trailer tonight wasn’t going to do any harm. She waited until Jughead and Betty were too engrossed in the movie to notice her slipping out, before she made her move. It was shockingly easy to escape the pair. Betty was too busy staring at the screen and Jughead was too busy pretending he wasn’t only focused on the blonde.

Unlike her younger sister Polly was very in-touch with Riverdale’s social scene. She had spent night after night at the Drive In, or down at Sweetwater river drinking and dancing under the moonlight with her friends. She knew that a Saturday night down at the Drive In was going to be the best chance she would get at seeing Jason. It had been so long, months. She hadn’t seen him since July and that felt like a life time ago.

It probably wasn’t safe for a pregnant girl to be walking in the dark by herself, but Polly was so determined to find her boyfriend to explain everything that she was willing to risk it. The first miracle of the evening was arriving there in one piece, the second of course was when she found Jason within no time at all. He was sitting with that girl in his sister’s convertible, and Polly felt her heart sink. She pulled the hood of her sweatshirt up over her hair to try and disguise herself just a little and went to get herself something to eat. She couldn’t just approach Jason when everyone else was looking. She needed to wait for her moment and Polly was good at waiting. She’d had a lot of practice growing up with the parents she had.

* * *

“Hey you two remember I’m in the car behind you so don’t get up to any funny business unless you want to become a part of my spank bank.” Reggie told the couple in the convertible.

“Gross.” Veronica complained. She pulled a face of disgust, which was exactly how she felt when it came to Reggie and his unwanted and often times inappropriate commentary.

“Knock it off Mantle, unless you want me to knock your teeth out.” Jason called out over his shoulder. He dangled his arm around Veronica’s shoulders. He didn’t plan on getting it on out in the open like that anyway. Truth be told he didn’t feel like taking things too far with Veronica, he still thought about Polly every day and the idea of getting too intimate, or too serious with someone else just didn’t sit right with him. He couldn’t say that though. The guys on the team would give him hell for something like that and he’d hate to think what Veronica would say if she knew.

“Are all the boys on your team this immature, or is Reggie just a special breed?” Veronica asked her new boyfriend.

Jason chuckled and took a quick glance back at the boy. Reggie had already moved on from harassing them. He was on a date tonight and was trying to woo her. It didn’t seem to be going well and that made Jason feel better about the whole situation. “Not all of them.” He assured her.

“Good, because I can’t imagine you acting the way he does.” She said, looking up at the boy.

Jason smiled. “Oh no, I’m way too mature for that.” He teased.

“You know what I’m in the mood for? Buttered popcorn. I’ll be right back.” Veronica climbed out of the car and walked across the lawn to join the line.

“We really need to stop meeting like this.” A voice from behind her said.

The girl turned around and smiled at the familiar face. “Toni, right?” She asked with a big smile on her face. “Are you sure you’re not stalking me?” She joked, eyes flicking between the girl’s outfit and her pretty face.

Toni rolled her eyes playfully. “Hey, how do I know you’re not the one stalking me. New to town, conveniently keep showing up wherever I go...” She joked in return. This evening hadn’t been all that great so far. Her bike got a flat tire after she ran over a spike so now she didn’t have a mode of transport anymore. Sweet Pea had given her a lift but ended up ditching her straight away for some new girl he was into, and Joaquin was on a date. She was essentially left all alone because Fangs was busy doing something for FP. Seeing Veronica again, a familiar face, just made her night really.

“I assure you, Toni Topaz, If I were stalking you, I’d be better at hiding it.” Veronica said as she ran her fingers through her hair.

“Hey, you think I’d be this bad at stalking?” Toni scoffed.

“I don’t know.” The other girl laughed. “Maybe. I mean it’s a lot harder to go unnoticed when you have voluptuous pink curls like yours.”

Toni had never heard anyone refer to hair as voluptuous before, but she couldn’t say that she hated it. “Okay fair point.” She said in mock defeat. It was fun joking around with the girl, but she had to remind herself that this was just banter between two people. Veronica had a boyfriend, and she had only met this girl twice. It was all fairly innocent and the last thing she wanted was to take it too far.

Veronica simply smiled at the girl.

* * *

Polly saw her chance and took it before Veronica could ruin it for her. When she approached Jason’s car, she had a now or never mantra on her mind. “Jason.” She whispered from his side of the car. The boy turned his head in surprise because the voice was so quiet he had thought that maybe he had been imagining it.

“Pol?” He asked in the softest whisper. He didn’t know if his eyes were playing tricks on him or if it was really her standing right there next to him.

“Baby it’s me.” She said after seeing his confused expression. “We should go somewhere quiet to talk.” She suggested, moving to open the door for him.

Jason looked around to see if he could find Veronica. He didn’t see her at first, but he caught just a glimpse of her in line for food. He figured she would be a while; the lines were always huge. He stepped out of the car and rushed off with Polly into the darkness.

* * *

Betty’s hand hit the bottom of the bowl. She let out a groan of disapproval because contrary to Jughead’s predictions, his microwave had actually produced some pretty tasty popcorn. She stood up, body brushing against Jughead’s as she moved past him. She just wanted to rinse out the bowl, and check in on Polly to see if she was feeling any better. Jughead’s eyes followed her for half a second before he got distracted by the movie again.

“Hey Polly, just wanted to see if you needed anything-.” Betty whispered as she pushed the bedroom door open. It was dark and it took a second for her eyes to adjust, but what was before her was an empty bed.

She reached across to switch on the light, but the brightness that filled the room simply confirmed what she already knew. “Jug?” She called out in a panic. If her mother found out that they’d lost Polly, Betty feared what she would do.

The boy rushed in assuming Betty needed some help.

“She’s gone. She left and we didn’t even notice.” Betty said in disbelief.

* * *

Veronica had once again invited Toni to come and sit with her. This time the girl agreed, however it was totally because she had no other friends this time and actually wanted to stick around to see a movie or two. When the girls walked back to Jason’s car, Veronica was left confused by its emptiness. “That’s odd.” She said with a small frown. “He didn’t tell me he was going anywhere.” She said, taking her phone out of her pocket so she could ask him where he had gone to.

“Maybe he went to the bathroom.” Toni suggested as she scooped her hand into her own box of popcorn.

Veronica hoped Toni was right. That seemed like the most logical explanation. She opened the back door and gestured for Toni to climb in so they could sit on the back of the car together.

“You must be hungry.” She laughed as they leaned back together.

Toni looked at her confused before she realised her popcorn was almost a third missing. “Oops.” She said sheepishly before letting out her own giggle.

“You can have some of mine if you run out, don’t worry.” Veronica said kindly.

“Hey Ronnie, who’s your friend?” Reggie asked after he approached the car for the second time that evening.

“Don’t call me that.” She said to him in annoyance. “And I thought Jason told you to get lost and leave me alone.”

“Yeah well pretty boy isn’t here. He went off with some fat dude. They were holding hands.” He snickered, pointing in the general direction Jason and Polly had rushed off in.

“Reggie you’re being a pest, please go back to your date before she leaves you and it ruins the rest of my evening.” She said to him with a forced smile.

Reggie shrugged. “Alright, alright, but just remember what I said about the spank bank.”  
He said, gesturing between the two girls this time.

Both Toni and Veronica made audible sounds of disgust as the boy went back to his dad’s car parked behind them.

“Why are teenage boys so immature?” Toni asked her with an annoyed groan chasing her words.

“I don’t know, but Reggie is his own special breed. That’s for sure.” She answered.

“Where do you think Jason really went off to, because I doubt Reggie is a reliable source.” Toni pointed out with raised eyebrows.

Veronica hummed. “I have no idea. Do you want to go and find out?” She questioned, feeling like her curiosity would get the better of her eventually anyway.

“Sure, why not?” Toni shrugged.

* * *

“I thought you left me.” Jason said to Polly for the third time.

“No! Of course, I didn’t. I wouldn’t do that to you.” Polly promised, hand on her stomach as she said so. “My dad took me against my will to this evil place called The Sisters of Quiet Mercy.”

“Yeah. I’ve heard of it.” He nodded but didn’t make any efforts to elaborate.

“But my mom and FP Jones rescued me, and I’ve been in hiding ever since.” The explanation was brief but there really wasn’t that much else to the story.

“Why didn’t you contact me, I thought you were gone. I never would have dated someone else if I knew you still wanted to be with me.” He sighed, feeling awful for putting everyone into this messed up situation. Everything was supposed to go according to their plan with Cheryl, and now everything was so messy and he had no idea how to fix it.

“I didn’t have a phone. That’s why I came out tonight to try and find you.” Polly explained. She reached out for him and held onto either sides of his hips. They couldn’t stand as close as they used to because of the baby inside of her.

“So, it wasn’t you, sending me those messages?” He asked quietly.

“What messages?” She asked. Polly had no idea about any of the threatening texts her boyfriend had been receiving.

“The texts. Someone has been sending me these, all through summer. They stopped for a little while, but they keep coming now.” He said before he took his phone out to show her.

“I didn’t send these. I don’t know who would have.” She frowned. “Nobody knew about our plans Jason, I promise. I didn’t even write them in my journal.”

“Okay. I believe you.” He whispered and placed a hand on her cheek. “I can’t believe it’s you. You’re really here.” He said happily.

* * *

“If you were a girl who had been locked up for months, and you finally had some freedom. Where would you go?” Betty asked Jughead as they drove through town in Alice’s station wagon.

“To find my boyfriend I wasn’t allowed to go and see.” Jughead answered straight away.

Betty let out a groan. “You’re right. I’m so stupid.” She complained. She had to turn the car around to change direction. She knew where Jason was because Veronica had posted about it online. That girl really needed to learn not to tell the world where she was at every given moment.

“You’re not stupid, you have a lot on your mind.” Jughead said kindly.

“Yeah. You have no idea.” She said under her breath. Betty hadn’t been able to tell Jughead about what happened with Archie, the whole thing was confidential because he was a minor and the case was of a sensitive nature. Her parents knew but only because the sheriff insisted on informing them because Betty was also a minor. The whole thing was still weighing on her heavily, especially since Archie still refused to draw his curtains open. It was a direct message for her, and she knew it.

* * *

“Jason?” Veronica asked as herself and Toni walked up to the young couple.

The red head let go of Polly and turned to look at his current girlfriend. “Veronica, I can explain. This is,”

“Polly, what are you doing here. Does your mom know?” Toni interrupted.

“Wait, this is Polly Cooper? I thought she was missing.” Veronica said in confusion.

“You might be new around here Veronica, but Jason is my boyfriend. We’re having a baby together.” Polly told her, trying to come across as more of a stern person than she naturally was.

“I didn’t know. I swear.” Veronica defended.

Jason watched the situation unfold in front of him as all three girls began to talk at once. It was hard to keep up, but Veronica was mostly trying to defend herself, while Toni made it clear that Polly shouldn’t be out and about as it wasn’t safe. He had no idea who Polly was talking to, because it seemed like she was mostly just ranting to herself. He was almost relieved when Jughead and Betty showed up to bring a much-needed interruption.

“Polly!” Betty cried out as she rushed to her sister’s side. “I was worried about you. How did you even get here?” She asked.

Polly sighed. “I’m fine Betty.” She promised.

Jughead glanced at Veronica. It made him feel a little uneasy bringing in a new person to this secret. Especially someone none of them really knew, and he had no reason to believe she could be trusted.

“Sorry to interrupt the reunion but we’re going to need answers.” He said as he turned toward Jason.

“Answers about what. I only just found out that Polly was still in town.” Jason said to him as he held his hands up in defence. He stared at Jughead, unaware that the question the beanie wearing loner would ask him would cause him to turn as white as a ghost.

“What happened the night your sister went missing?” Jughead asked.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Betty chuckled. “Your opinion changed because he got his hands on your southside serp-,” she paused realising what she was about to say. Her eyes met with Veronica’s and the two girls started to laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! I've been a little busy and then unwell. Hopefully this was worth the wait. Only two more chapters until it's over!

Polly’s little scheme had caused a rift between the two Cooper sisters. Betty didn’t trust her sister any longer and fixated on making sure someone was with her at all times. The youngest of the two siblings wanted to start crashing at the trailer to keep an eye on her, but Alice put a stop to those plans. If Hal hadn’t returned once again, she may have considered it, but he was home, and Alice wanted to avoid raising his suspicions even further. A part of Alice also had a slight fear deep inside of her chest that wondered if it would be safe for her to be alone with the man. She knew that her gut instincts weren’t always founded on fact, but she just couldn’t seem to shake that uneasy feeling. Luckily for her Hal had started sleeping in the den ever since she had first mentioned FP and Charles. That at the very least gave her a safe haven where she had the luxury of locking the bedroom door while she slept.

As Alice laid staring up at her ceiling, willing herself to fall asleep. Across the hallway her youngest daughter sat at her desk, eyes staring at the bright glaring computer screen in front of her. The top of her internet browser was littered with numerous tabs she couldn’t close. She needed to get to the bottom of this once and for all. The sheriff’s station hadn’t made any ground when it came to Cheryl’s disappearance. She knew for a fact that the only reason they hadn’t entirely scrapped the case was because the crime rate was otherwise underwhelming in a town like Riverdale.

She looked over her notes rigorously trying to find some kind of connection between Cheryl going missing the same night Polly was to go to the SOQM. She didn’t understand how things had seemed to line up perfectly until it all had gone wrong. Everything Jason had told them the other night had made Betty feel more confused. The Blossoms and her father were both sending their daughters to the sisters on the same night. It just couldn’t be a coincidence. Things just didn’t happen that way, especially not in her town.

It was going to be yet another late night, but Betty owed it to Cheryl somehow. She just had this overwhelming feeling that she needed to find out the truth because if nothing else, the girl deserved the truth to come to light. Whether she was dead, or alive.

* * *

Jughead sat opposite Polly. His father was out once again which was beginning to make Jughead suspect the worst. The man never came home drunk, but that didn’t stop the boy from the head scratching confusion that made his mind jump to the worst kind of conclusions.

“Jason said he would come to the next doctor’s check up with me.” Polly told the boy as they shared a conversation and a family meal from Pop’s.

Jughead nodded and offered her a small polite smile. He didn’t particularly care about Jason Blossom; the boy was a dick and that was even more apparent now that he had given Veronica the flick. It’s not like the situation was a great one to begin with, but Jughead wasn’t blind to the change in the girl’s demeanour at school. People had started to talk about what happened and from what Jughead had overheard, nobody was anywhere near the truth. He hadn’t spoken to the girl, but he knew Toni had been in touch since the night at the drive in, and if Toni deemed someone worthy of her attention, you knew they couldn’t be half bad. She wasn’t the easiest to impress and Jughead knew that from experience.

Polly continued to drone on and on about Jason before realising Jughead hadn’t actually said anything in a while. “Where is your dad?” She asked him, nudging his foot underneath the table.

Jughead shrugged. “Am I my father’s keeper?” He questioned, raising his eyebrows.

Polly looked back at him in amusement. FP had been making himself scarce a lot more recently. “Do you think there’s something going on between him and my mom?” She asked, leaning forward as though this was a top-secret topic.

“Probably.” He said, not really interested in gossiping. It just wasn’t his thing. He did like puzzles and coming to conclusions but that was more to do with factual evidence rather than speculation for entertainment.

“I found one of her bras in the bedroom. And at first, I thought it was just a coincidence, you know? Like any woman could have that same bra. And to be honest I don’t really want to think about my mom having sex with anyone, but then it made sense. Don’t you think?” She asked. Polly knew he wasn’t as interested in this as she was, but Betty wasn’t talking to her, and Jason hadn’t been around to notice these things anyway.

“She’s still married.” He muttered.

Polly heard what he said, and it was her turn to shrug. “To a man who tried to force me to have an abortion.” She pointed out. “And they haven’t exactly been happy for a while. I know he’s my dad, but your dad has treated me and my baby so much better than mine did.”

“So, what. You saying you want to be my step sister or something? I already have a sister. I don’t need anymore.” He said, voice starting to sound snarky.

“What? No! It’s got nothing to do with that. I just mean, if they were together and happy. It might change a lot for my family.” She explained.

Jughead was done with this conversation. He didn’t want to think about things changing too much. He was sure Betty would never want to kiss someone related to her mom’s boyfriend, even if they’d kissed once before. He finished his burger without answering the girl, and to his delight she didn’t try and continue this train wreck of a conversation either.

Xxx

Jason Blossom didn’t spook easily. He could watch gory Halloween movies in the dark, all alone, and sleep like a baby afterwards. He didn’t get frightened by jump scares, or ghost stories, but this was different. He was shoving his school bag into his locker when the newest message chimed in. He checked his phone in the hopes that it would be Polly. He had given her a new phone so they could communicate and so far, it had been pretty great for them. They wasted no time in making up for the time they had lost. It unfortunately wasn’t Polly. It was his own personal harasser. _Jason_, it read, _your days are numbered, soon everyone will learn the truth of what you did._

There were parts of his story that Jason had chosen to leave out when he retold the events of the fourth of July. He had kept those details to himself instead of telling Jughead Jones his business. He didn’t know who was harassing him, but he had his suspicions, or rather he suspected one person in particular. He couldn’t think of anyone else who would hold a grudge against him this strongly. Hal Cooper was the only person who could be out to get him. Jason had gotten his daughter pregnant and torn his family apart. Jason was so sure it was Hal that he was already silently planning to confront him. Nobody in the school hallway around him had any idea what was going on in his head, and Jason preferred it stay that way. He deleted the message and pocketed his phone. His locker slammed shut before the boy rushed off to meet up with his fellow footballers. He needed to get through this day of school before he went off to find Hal and have this out man to man.

* * *

Veronica hesitated before she approached the lunch table Betty was sitting at. If this were weeks ago, Archie Andrews may have made a rare appearance at the table on his way to the music room, but as of late Veronica hadn’t seen the boy anywhere near Betty or her friends. She walked across and stood near the table with her lunch tray. “Is this seat taken?” She asked Betty directly. Veronica really wasn’t sure where she stood with the blonde. Betty had warned her against getting involved with Jason, and she hadn’t listened. Everything that had happened since then now felt like a blur, but Veronica was still feeling the same pain she had felt the night she met Polly for the first time.

“Yes. Sit!” Kevin answered before Betty had a chance to. Betty smiled at her briefly, it was a polite gesture that Veronica appreciated as she sat down.

  
“Can I ask a dumb question?” Veronica asked, looking between the two friends.

“Always.” Kevin nodded. He was a curious person by nature and was delighted by the thought of Veronica asking anything that might be embarrassing to say out loud.

“I preface this by saying I mean no offence.” Veronica said, looking at the two with a sincerity.

Her wording still made Betty feel somewhat anxious. She was ready to go into a defensive mode if the girl said anything about Polly.

“If Jughead is from the southside, why doesn’t he go to Southside High?” She asked innocently. “With Toni, and the others…” She added quickly.

Kevin folded his hands-on top of the table, leaning forward like he was about to spill a huge scoop. “Once upon a time, Jughead lived on the northside of town. Believe it or not.” He said to her in a dramatic way that made Veronica relax. “It’s unsure what exactly happened, but the business Mr Jones started with Archie’s dad went bust, and the Joneses moved back to the trailer park. By then Jughead and Jellybean were already settled into Riverdale Elementary, and Middle School, and they never switched out.” He told.

“Jellybean?” Veronica asked, trying not to laugh. She didn’t want to laugh in a mean way, she actually loved the name and wished hers was nearly as exciting.

“She’s gone now. Moved down to Toledo with Jug’s mom.” Betty said with a small nod.

  
Veronica listened to every word Betty said. She was just glad the girl was talking to her considering everything. “So, he’s not a serpent?” She asked quietly. The crowd she had been a part of for most of her Riverdale High experience had made it seem like serpent was a dirty word.

Betty shook her head. “No. Jughead isn’t into that kind of thing.” She answered.

Kevin pulled a face because he didn’t know when Betty became such a Jughead Jones expert, but he didn’t say anything about it.

“You know they’re not that bad.” Kevin told the two girls. “The guy I’ve been seeing is a serpent, changed my opinion entirely.” He said in an earnest tone.

Betty chuckled. “Your opinion changed because he got his hands on your southside serp-,” she paused realising what she was about to say. Her eyes met with Veronica’s and the two girls started to laugh.

“Well I mean that might have something to do with it.” He said with a smug little grin. This merely made the two girls laugh even harder.

* * *

When the last bell sounded, and the end of the school day began students buzzed down the halls getting ready for their afternoon freedom. Betty Cooper hurried to her locker to discard the last of her school books. She didn’t have any homework because unlike her fellow classmates, she had finished all of her work in her classes. She knew the bus timetable off by heart by now and had calculated how much time she had to get to the next bus out of town. She needed to go to the SOQM to see what else she could find out about that night. She knew her mother would advise her to leave it be, and that sticking her nose where it didn’t belong would only get her into more trouble, but Betty didn’t care. She wanted to get to the bottom of all of this, at the very least she might figure out what actually happened that fateful night.

She had almost finished packing her bag to go home when Veronica appeared beside her. “Betty, I know things have been somewhat awkward since I first arrived, but what happened the other night, I want to help you find that missing girl, and I want to do what I can to help your sister and her baby too.”

Betty wasn’t expecting those particular words to come from the other girl, but she appreciated Veronica’s direct nature. “Thanks Veronica.” She said sweetly.

Veronica smiled back at her, warmly. “Do you need a ride? I know you don’t live too far, but I thought I’d ask anyway.” She said thoughtfully.

Betty was about to decline before deciding that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to have someone go with her. “Actually, I do need a ride somewhere, but it’s not home.” She said, hoping Veronica would be okay with that.

“Just give me an address and I’ll be happy to have my driver take you.” Veronica said as she watched Betty with curiosity. She could tell the blonde had something up her sleeve, and that excited her just a little. “Oh!” She said, after suddenly remembering something. “I told Toni I’d pick her up after school. Is it okay if we do that first?” She asked.

Betty nodded. “Sure.”

* * *

The only thing Hal Cooper was concerned about was the whereabouts of his eldest daughter. He hadn’t seen her in a long time and that was partially due to his absence from town. He had important business to attend to elsewhere, but he had put that on hold as soon as he reckoned his wife was keeping their daughter’s location a secret. It did take him a while to figure it out at first, but when it came to mind, he thought it was the most obvious place his wife could have come up with. He drove himself across town and marched into the Jones trailer as though he owned the place.

“Polly?” He called out as he stepped foot into the building. He didn’t care if he had to confront FP Jones, Hal wasn’t taking no for an answer. He wasn’t going to let Alice make a fool of him or lose out to a Jones of all people.

There wasn’t anyone in the kitchen or living room, but Hal could hear voices travelling from behind the closed bedroom door. He stomped across the kitchen and ripped the door open.

“Dad?” Polly asked in a voice that embodied a mix of fear and confusion.

Hal looked between the young couple. Jason moved himself between the two. “Mr Cooper, Polly doesn’t want to see you.” He said boldly.

“I don’t care.” Hal said to him in annoyance. “And you don’t get to speak for her, you spineless weasel. I know what you’ve been up to.” He said in disgust.

That was enough to have Jason’s suspicions confirmed. “It’s you isn’t it? You’re the one sending me those messages. I’ll have you arrested for harassment. Then you’ll have to stay far away from Polly, me, and our baby.” He threatened.

Hal let out a huff of frustration. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, but Polly is coming with me.” He said to him.

Jason looked at Polly who had been digging her nails into his skin, afraid of her father actually taking her away, or back to that evil place he tried to lock her up in.

“Dad I want to stay here, with Jason, and the Joneses.” She said timidly.

“No, absolutely not. I don’t know what nonsense your mother has been feeding you about these people, but they’re not the kind of people you should be spending any of your time with Polly.” He said as he folded his arms across his chest. He didn’t want to waste another second in this dump. He wanted his daughter out of the trailer and back to where he could keep an eye on her.

“You don’t know them!” She insisted.

“Polly you are coming with me. Get your stuff and meet me in the car.” He demanded.

Jason wasn’t having any of it. He stood up and walked across to the man. “She’s not going anywhere with you.” He informed the man, turning back to his girlfriend who was still feeling fairly uneasy about this situation. She just wanted to message her mother, have Alice come and rescue her from the man she was supposed to call her father.

“You think I’m scared of you, a Blossom?” Hal asked with a laugh.

Jason rolled his eyes. “Sneaking around with my mom while my dad’s gone doesn’t make you more of a man.”

“How dare you.” Hal spat in disbelief. He didn’t want Jason to say such a thing in front of his daughter.

Jason had planned on confronting the man today, he just didn’t expect it to be while he was visiting Polly. He wanted to really let the man have it but Polly being there changed his approach. Hal made him angry, what he had tried to do to Polly and his influence over his own mother. It just made his blood boil. He knew Hal was the one sending him messages, and nothing the man said or did would convince him otherwise. Hal was going to have to pay some kind of consequences for what he had been doing to them, sooner or later. “You heard me. You treat everyone around you like they’re beneath you. Cheating on your wife, trying to control your daughters and harassing me? You’re the lowest of the low and I’m not letting you take Polly back to that evil place. So step aside so we can go and raise our baby far, far away from you.” He snapped, turning toward Polly with his arm outstretched. Polly hesitated before rushing up to him and taking his hand. Jason walked out of the room with his girlfriend and felt equal part empowered and confused as to how easy Hal had backed off and let them walk through.

He led Polly out to his car and waited until they were both buckled in before driving off, taking Polly home where he hoped she would be safe until they could figure out where to go next.

* * *

When Betty decided to sneak into the SOQM with the intention to steal documentation, she had expected it to be a lot harder to get in, but it really wasn’t all that difficult. She recalled the tunnels her mother had mentioned, and the three girls managed to locate them with ease, simply from Betty’s recollection of the brief story her mother had told her in recent times. They had to move quickly as they stood out like sore thumbs. Everyone else their age was dressed in the SOQM uniforms, and everyone else was dressed as nuns, neither of which fit their descriptions. Betty snuck into Sister Woodhouse’s office and with the use of a trusty bobby pin she opened the filing cabinet with almost no trouble at all. She flicked through the alphabetised system and found the name she was looking for. Cheryl Blossom, she opened another drawer and realised it wasn’t only categorised by last name, but by year too. She found the years that corresponded to when her mother was in high school, and it didn’t take her very long to find the files on Alice and Charles too. She quickly grabbed them just in time for Veronica to open the door to tell her to hurry up. She shoved the files under her sweater and rushed out, following Veronica and Toni back down the way they came.

The three girls made it to the car without getting caught, a miracle in itself really. They were all out of breath, but it didn’t matter at this point because they were safe from getting into any trouble, and one step closer to finding Cheryl, which was why they came in the first place.

Betty kept her family’s files to herself, but opened up the one labelled after the blossom twin, in front of the other girls so they could help her dissect the information. Jason had told them the other night that Cheryl was going to be sent to the sisters alongside Polly, but he had never elaborated on why, or how coincidental it was that the two girls closest to him would be sent to the same place on the exact same night.

She flipped through the pages before returning to one that had caught her eye. This admission form included something that made Betty feel more confused than ever. “That’s not Cheryl.” Betty said, pointing at the photograph of a girl that accompanied the rest of the information, which actually came across quite accurately to Betty who had skimmed over it briefly.

“Who is it then?” Veronica asked as she stared at the girl on the page.

“I have no idea.” Betty said with a frown on her face.

“Whoever she is, she’s clearly getting whatever therapy that was intended for the real Cheryl.” Toni said as she glanced over the handwritten notes scrawled across the next page. The underlined heading made her skin crawl.

_Sexual correction therapy: session #1_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update is the final flashback, where everything will be revealed. 
> 
> What do you think happened to Cheryl?


	12. Flashback #2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You don’t.” He said with a shake of his head. “You don’t deserve anything she’s ever done to you. I mean it.” He promised.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The second last chapter omg. 
> 
> Hopefully most of your questions have been answered, but in true riverdale fashion there are a few more answers coming in the next update.
> 
> This is the longest update yet,
> 
> Hopefully you like it! 
> 
> Let me know what you think I love hearing it. x

_Jason stared at the ground as he mulled over the words his girlfriend had just spoken. It was a lot to process at once. He was only 17, and Polly hadn’t quite reached her 17th birthday yet. The idea of them being parents to someone so young and innocent. It just didn’t make any sense. The universe was playing a joke on them and he knew it. That didn’t mean he was going to run away from this, or from Polly. He just needed to breathe. He ran his fingers through his hair and pushed his car door open. The pair had driven up to local make out spot in town. It was a quiet night which was mostly due to how late it was. He just needed a moment which was why he stepped out of the car, leaving Polly in the passenger seat on her own. _

* * *

_In the two days it took Jason to process the fact he was to become a father, things had escalated at Thornhill. The boy had spent a lot of time away from home trying to distract himself from his family and the knowledge that it would soon be expanding. He was entirely unaware of how sinister things had turned for his sister. _

_He had only just left the house when Penelope made her move. The woman stormed upstairs on a mission. The door to Cheryl’s room had almost flown off its hinges when she violently presented herself in the doorway. Cheryl looked up from the magazine she had been flipping through. The noise had startled her, and her mother’s dark eyes sent a fearful shiver through her body. _

_“Come with me.” Penelope said coldly. She paused for only half a second, which didn’t give Cheryl a chance to move or ask questions. She walked up to the bed in a hurry and harshly yanked her daughter’s wrist. “I said, come with me.” She snapped. Cheryl scurried off the side of the bed realising this was one of those situations where she had to obey instead of giving a snarky remark._

_Penelope didn’t even look at the girl as she pulled her out of the bedroom and down the grand staircase. Cheryl was focused mainly on not mis-stepping, there wasn’t so much as a peep of sound coming from the teen either. _

_As Penelope neared the dungeon like stairs toward the basement. Cheryl began to fear the worst. Her mother, or rather the monster who gave birth to her, pushed her forward so she had to descend the stairs first. She was careful as she took each step. Penelope’s breath hitting the back of her head as the two Blossoms were walking so close together. _

_She reached for the doorhandle with a shaky hand. Penelope grew impatient behind her and reached forward to intervene. _

_Once the door had been opened, Penelope let go of her daughter’s wrist and told her to go in. The room was too dark, and the young girl hesitated before stepping inside. She turned back to see if Penelope was following but instead the door was slammed in her face. _

_She closed her eyes and let out a silent sob into the darkness. _

* * *

_Jason had come up with a plan he believed to be fool proof. The thing he failed to realise was that nothing was truly fool proof, and plans could always go awry. He didn’t factor in one villain who would attack them from every possible angle._

_As soon as the basement door closed, Penelope rushed upstairs to open the front door. “Harold.” She smiled wickedly at the man who had been assisting her with her little lesbian problem. _

_Hal stepped into the grand building and waited for the redhead to close the door. “Did you do what I suggested?” He questioned once the door was safely closed._

_Penelope nodded her head. “I made the arrangements like you suggested. Cheryl will be relocated right on schedule.” She assured him with a smile. _

_When Clifford had proven himself a failure as a man and provided her with no solutions on what to do about Cheryl, Penelope fell quite easily into the trap of the man who offered to help her in ways nobody else seemed to be able to._

_“I’m glad.” Hal said to her proudly. He was quite pleased with himself and wasn’t afraid to express that outwardly. “I’m in the mood for some tea. Shall we?” He asked, directing her toward the kitchen with his hand firmly pressed against the woman’s back. _

* * *

_Polly had overheard a conversation that made her feel quite anxious. She knew her father was up to something. He hadn’t told Alice about the pregnancy yet. Polly knew this because her mother was yet to storm into her room to give her a lecture. He had been making hushed toned phone calls to a woman he kept referring to as ‘sister.’ Her family wasn’t overly religious, but when they did attend a Sunday service, they weren’t attending a catholic congregation. She knew her father didn’t have any siblings, so her mind was jumping to all kinds of conclusions. Jason had promised to talk to her soon, but Polly couldn’t wait. She needed to see him. So when her father had left the house Polly did what she did best which was sneak out of her family home._

_She only had a few guesses as to where her boyfriend would be, and luckily for her she managed to figure it out with her first guess. She walked into Pop’s diner and found the boy sitting at a booth on his own. This was uncommon for him but part of her was just relieved he wasn’t there with some other non-pregnant girl. “Jason?” She said gently as she approached the booth._

_He looked up when he heard his name. “Hey, sit down.” He said with a small smile._

_Polly slid into the booth opposite him and tucked her leg up onto the seat with her. “I know you needed space and you said we would talk soon, but my dad is up to something. I think he’s trying to send me away somewhere.” She said in a hushed tone. The diner wasn’t full but anyone could overhear and she didn’t want this conversation to be heard by the wrong ears. _

_Jason nodded his head. “I have thought about it.” He said to her. “I think we should leave town. Start a life somewhere new.” _

_Polly was surprised by his words. She thought Jason wanted to stay in Riverdale and inherit one of his family properties. He talked about that a lot, and how he wanted to invest his inheritance into making his own business, prove he could make his own money and wouldn’t have to rely on his parents forever. “Where would we go?” She asked him._

_“South.” He told her. “I’ve been mapping it out all afternoon.” He told her, showing her all of the marked locations, he had highlighted on a road map. “Cheryl would have to come.” He told his girlfriend as Polly read the page in front of her. “Things aren’t good for her at home. She can’t be left behind.”_

_“Of course.” Polly nodded. “When are we going?”_

_“Tomorrow. We’ll have to go early, so go home and pack your bags. Okay? Pack light. We can buy what we don’t have when we find somewhere settle down.”_

_Polly didn’t know if that was enough time to say goodbye to her sister. She knew Betty would be devastated if she never got her goodbye. It was a lot for Polly to process. She would be saying goodbye to everything she’s ever known. Her mother might be unbearable sometimes, and hard to live with but Polly knew she would miss her too. _

_“What time are we meeting?” She asked._

_“Just before dawn.” Jason answered. “We’ll have to hurry, Polly. So don’t be late.” He said, reaching out to take her hand. _

_“I love you, Jason.” She whispered, eyes meeting his._

_“I love you too.” He promised._

* * *

_Penelope finally came down to the basement to release Cheryl. Hal had left not long before and she had waited to make sure the man had left the property before fetching her daughter. _

_Cheryl’s face was raw with tear stains, and the light hurt her eyes as she resurfaced. _

_“Don’t look at me like that.” Penelope scoffed. “A little darkness never hurt anybody.” She said as she allowed the girl to leave the basement and return to her room._

_Cheryl raced upstairs and went straight to her bed. She flung herself on top of the mattress where she started to sob once again. She couldn’t remember a day in this house when she hadn’t cried. It had been such a long time, and whatever happiness she had outside of her family seemed to disappear every time she stepped foot inside of her home._

_She stayed there even after the tears ran out. She didn’t move until Jason came home and went straight in to find her._

_“What’s wrong?” He asked. He had noticed her miserable expression immediately._

_The girl walked past him to close her door again. She wrapped her arms around herself and let out a huff. “Like you’d believe me.” She said sadly. She loved her brother with her whole heart, but Jason didn’t understand what it was like to have your own mother hate you. Penelope adored Jason and always had. _

_“Did Mom do something?” He asked her, knowing things had been rough lately. _

_“She locked me in the basement for hours. In the dark. She didn’t even tell me what I did, or why I was there.” Cheryl answered. She had wanted to brush it off, but this time it felt like the woman was winning, like Penelope had finally started to break her._

_“What the hell?” He asked in disbelief. _

_“Just leave it, JJ.” Cheryl said in defeat. She sat on the end of her bed and wrapped an arm around the paling. “Maybe I deserve it.” She whispered to herself._

_“You don’t.” He said with a shake of his head. “You don’t deserve anything she’s ever done to you. I mean it.” He promised. _

_Jason knelt down in front of his only sister and looked up at her with sad eyes. “Polly is pregnant.” He whispered. “You’re going to be an aunt.”_

_“I am?” She asked, a soft smile began to form. That was the only good news she had heard all day. _

_He nodded. “Yeah, really.” She whispered, letting out a soft laugh. He still couldn’t get his head around it. “Nana gave me her ring. I’m going to give it to Polly, I want to marry her.”_

_Cheryl’s smile widened. She knew she looked awful but she didn’t care. This was the only thing that mattered today. “Can I be your best woman?” She asked him._

_“Duh.” He said, rolling his eyes. _

_She smiled and reached out to take his hand. “Oh JJ. I’m so happy for you.” She whispered. _

_“I want you to find love too, Cheryl. When you find a girl who loves you as much as I love Polly, I’ll be your best man.” He said warmly._

_“You know?” She asked, letting out an emotional sob._

_“Course I know. You’re my twin.” He teased, squeezing her fingers. “We share everything, hair colour, good looks, attraction to girls.” _

_She let out a short laugh._

_“But hey, there’s something else.” He said in a more serious tone. “Polly and I are leaving town. You have to come with us, okay? I won’t leave you here with them. I would never.”_

_“You want me to go with you?” _

_He nodded. “We’re leaving early. I know it’s late notice, but Polly’s dad isn’t thrilled about the baby. She’s scared he’s planning to send her away to a convent. She’s really scared, and I can’t risk her being right.” _

_Cheryl nodded. “I understand.”_

* * *

_Polly figured it was just her luck to find out Betty was spending the night elsewhere. She assumed it was with Kevin, but Alice never specified where her youngest was sleeping over so Polly had to leave room for other possibilities. She spent the evening with Alice, as Hal was still off somewhere else doing what Polly only assumed was something shady. The evening was actually somewhat bearable and for the first time Polly wondered if maybe she just told Alice the truth, maybe things wouldn’t have to be so drastic. She didn’t get a chance to, however because Alice went to bed before Polly could work up the courage to confess. Instead the girl wrote her mother a note and left it by her bedside before she went to bed herself. _

_Instead of waking to the sound of her alarm like Polly had planned, the girl woken up in the back of her father’s car in the middle of the night with a fright._

_“Dad? Where are we going?” She asked, rubbing her eyes to try and wake herself up a little. _

_“Somewhere safe, Polly. You’ll thank me when you’re older.” He assured the girl. “Why don’t you get some more sleep.” He said as a suggestion._

_She sat up properly and looked out of the window. She didn’t recognise where they were and that wasn’t only because it was dark out. “You’re taking me to that nun aren’t you?” She asked in distress._

_“Don’t be so dramatic dear. Sister Woodhouse will take good care of you. She took care of your mother when she had her own little indiscretion in high school. Look how well she turned out.” He said with a smile._

_Polly’s frown deepened. “No. This isn’t what I want.” She said groggily. She didn’t know why she felt so exhausted, or how he managed to get this far without her waking up, but that was the least of her concerns._

_“Polly. You’re sixteen. You don’t know what you want. This week you’ll want a baby, next week you’ll want to go to Disneyland.”_

_“Daddy.” She pleaded, undoing her seatbelt. “Please don’t do this to me.” She begged._

_“I’m sorry Honey, but those puppy dog eyes won’t work on me.” He said plainly. “Put your seatbelt on. You’re already proving to be an unfit mother with choices like that.”_

_She leaned back in her seat and put her belt back on. The only reason why she did so was to protect her baby, because Hal was wrong. She wasn’t going to be an unfit mother at all. _

* * *

_When Alice woke up it was to the sound of her phone ringing loudly in her ear. She reached out in the dark and tried to find her phone without needing to open her eyes. She found it and tried to turn it off, but her finger missed the reject call button. She opened her eyes and noticed FP’s name on her screen. She sat up and reached across to turn on her lamp. Polly’s letter caught her attention as she answered the call. “FP?” She answered in confusion._

_“We were supposed to meet up tonight. You didn’t show. I got worried.” He admitted._

_Alice let out a sigh. “I’m sorry.” She told him as her eyes skimmed over her daughter’s messy handwritten letter. _

_“Are you okay? I tried calling you earlier, but you didn’t answer.” _

_“Sorry. I was tired and fell asleep pretty early.” She said distractedly. _

_FP let out a soft breath. “That’s okay.” He said to her. He was slightly disappointed, but he couldn’t really be upset when he understood their arrangement. _

_Alice didn’t speak for a moment. “Hang on, FP.” She said as she hurried out of her bedroom and dashed across the hall. “Polly?” She called out upon realising her daughter wasn’t home. _

_The note had explained everything. Polly confessed she was pregnant and leaving town with Jason in the morning. She expressed her fear of her father forcing her to be sent to a nun he kept talking to on the phone._

_Alice’s heart sank when she realised Polly wasn’t home, and neither was Hal. She knew it was possible that Polly had gone to meet Jason earlier, but she did fear that wasn’t the case. She noticed Polly’s phone was still on her bedside and plugged into the charger. She didn’t know the pin to unlock it, so she went looking through her daughter’s desk. She knew Polly wrote down all of her passwords. She made a mess looking through her drawer and gave up realising she wouldn’t be able to find it in time. She raised her own phone back to her ear. “FP, she’s gone. Polly’s gone.” She said with a shaky voice. “I need you to help me find her.”_

* * *

_“We will take special care of her.” Sister Woodhouse promised Hal as he signed the required paperwork. _

_“I know you will.” Hal said to her with a warm smile. He went way back with the Sisters, the relationship between this establishment and the Cooper family went back generations. He stood back from the registration window and turned toward the woman. “She will be less problematic than her mother was.” He assured the woman. Polly may be reckless, but Alice was a real problem back in the day. He may have learnt to love the woman, but that was after a lot of work had gone into changing her into a more suitable life partner. _

_“And if she’s not, she will be in no time at all.” Sister Woodhouse added, knowing that’s what the man meant._

_“Exactly.” He chuckled. “My daughter made one bad choice, and I’m sure she won’t make another once you’ve taught her right from wrong.” She said in a hopeful tone._

_The woman nodded. “Of course, Harold. You know we’d do anything for you and your family.” _

_Hal nodded as well. “And I have been informed that a friend of the family has contacted you about her problem child too.” He prompted, hoping Penelope had actually taken his suggestion seriously._

_Sister Woodhouse smiled. “Ah yes, Miss Blossom will be with us in the morning. Such a waste she would be without our guidance.” She tutted._

_“My thoughts exactly.” Hal agreed._

_Sister Woodhouse placed a hand on his arm ever so gently. “The morning will be here in no time. You need your rest. We’ll be in touch if the girl needs anything.” She said to him, signally that it was time for him to leave._

_“Thank you, Sister.” _

* * *

_When FP’s truck pulled up, Alice was already waiting on the curb for him. She opened the passenger side door and climbed in at a quickened speed. “Hal took her. I know it.” She said to the man as FP waited for her to buckle herself in._

_His car was a little messy, old take out bags and clothes all across the floor. He expected her to make comments on it, but she never did. “What’s going on Alice? Why would he take her?” He asked in a calm voice. He didn’t understand and he found it extremely difficult to offer help if he didn’t know what was happening._

_“Polly is pregnant. He’s taking her to an evil place, FP. He’s taking her where he took me.” She said shakily. “They say they’re going to help, but they don’t help. They’re wicked.” She gripped at the sleeve of his opened flannel. She was desperate for his help and FP could see it in her eyes, hear it in her broken voice._

_“Okay. We won’t let him do that.” He promised, placing a hand over hers. “Just tell me how to get there and we’ll help her.” _

_Alice nodded her head. She loosened her grip so that he could turn his attention back to the road. _

_They drove in silence for the most part. It was dark and the road was quiet. She gave him directions from memory, but it was hard doing so when most of her memories involved going to and from the facility on foot. _

_All of her memories flooded back the closer they got. She was filled with guilt, filled with pain that pulsed through her veins. She couldn’t let Polly go through the same thing. She just needed to do whatever she could to prevent that. Nobody had ever broken her spirit the way the sisters had. She didn’t make it easy for them, but they still to this very day made her skin crawl. _

_“Stop the car.” Alice gasped, needed fresh air. They were close to the building. So close that Alice could see it in the near distance. FP pulled up onto the grass and turned toward her to see if Alice was okay. _

_She just needed a moment to breathe. _

_He let her take her time. _

_“I can’t tell you everything, but I will. When we get her out of here, I’ll tell you everything.” She whispered. _

_FP remained silent. He simply nodded his head in response. _

_She reached up to touch his cheek every so lightly before her hand dropped back down to her own lap. “We can’t drive the rest of the way. We’ll need to go in by foot.” She told him as she unclipped her belt._

_FP did the same and followed her lead. He didn’t know what they were in for. He didn’t exactly have time to prepare for some kind of rescue mission, but this was Alice’s daughter and he’d do anything for Alice and her kids. He hoped she’d realise that. _

* * *

_When Jason’s alarm went off, he rose up out of bed almost instantly. He had always been good at waking up like that and in this case his skill came in handy. He changed into the clothing he had laid out for their journey and made sure his bag was packed with everything he needed. He tiptoed across the hall to where Cheryl was getting ready in her own room. He knew his parents wouldn’t be disturbed, his mother had taken her sleeping pills, and Clifford was still out of town. He let himself into Cheryl’s room. “You nearly ready?” He whispered._

_The girl nodded her head. “I’m ready now.” She whispered._

_“Leave your phone. Don’t want anyone to track us.” He said as he watched her check her cell phone._

_Cheryl placed her phone down on her bed. She felt uneasy about that choice. She hadn’t told Heather she was leaving, and it felt like a betrayal to leave her in the dark like that. She knew her number by heart because she constantly lived in fear that her mother would confiscate her cell phone and she wouldn’t be able to contact her girlfriend. _

_Jason picked up his sister’s bag and slung it over his shoulder. His own bag was already hanging over his other. “Come on, we have to go and meet Polly.” He said quietly._

_Cheryl looked down at her phone in hesitation before she nodded. “Let’s go, JJ.” She whispered and stood up ready to follow him out. _

_The twins made it downstairs without a hitch. Jason opened the back door and let his sister out first. He was about to lock up when he noticed his senile grandmother standing in the kitchen. “Jason.” She said quietly._

_“You’re dreaming Nana.” He whispered before closing the door and following his sister out._

_He knew they were walking away from a lot, but he didn’t care. He needed to keep his sister, his child, and his future wife safe. The money wasn’t important in comparison to that. _

* * *

_When they made it to the exterior entrance to the tunnels, Alice turned to FP with her torch shining against his chest. “If it hasn’t changed then they’ll only have one night guard on this floor. We just need to avoid him, and we’ll be in and out.” She said, silently praying that they hadn’t upped the security too significantly._

_“We’ll get her out of here, Alice.” He promised._

_She smiled weakly. That was the plan, but she couldn’t ignore the very real possibility that they would run into some trouble on the way._

_She passed him the torch so he could shine the light for her. She fiddled with the lock and it opened just as easily as she remembered. It was a little rusty, but that didn’t stop her. She gestured for FP to follow her into the tunnel._

_FP wasn’t entirely sure what they were getting themselves into or how Alice had such intimate knowledge of this entire establishment, but he trusted she knew what she was doing. He followed her as she led the way._

_When they made it into the building with only a single door in the way of them and the inside, Alice turned off her torch and looked up at FP. “Whatever happens, just know I am so grateful for you in my life.” She whispered. _

_FP nodded his head. “Me too.” He said in a shy whisper._

_Alice smiled at him before she opened the door. The hallway was silent, and they needed to keep quiet. It was very late and most of the patients would be asleep, and as they should be. Alice wished she could help all of them leave but unfortunately, she just couldn’t right now. She didn’t have the means to shut this place down. Some day she would be able to do that, but her main focus was to rescue Polly._

_She had a general idea as to where to find her but it had been years since she had been in this place so her memory might not be their most reliable tool. _

_The two adults were quiet as they roamed the hallways. They were in the right wing of the building which was a good sign. Alice opened one door with a new admission sign on the door, but her daughter was nowhere in sight. She let out a quiet sigh and the two kept walking, desperately searching for the right room._

* * *

_While other girls were fast asleep, Polly lay wide awake. She hadn’t stopped crying since she arrived, and she felt exhausted. She didn’t know the time because the clock in her room seemed to be broken. It was like she was stuck in prison, her own torture chamber. She didn’t know the time or the place, and all of her hopes of running away with Jason had been thrown out the window. _

_The thing that hurt her the most was the fact that her own father did this knowing how upset she was about it. He always painted himself as the good cop parent, as if her mom was the tough one they couldn’t get anything past. She had always gotten along with her dad over her mother, but as she laid there in an unfamiliar bed all she wanted was for her mother to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay, give her promises that it would all get better._

_She felt like she had cried all of her tears and delirium had come in. She swore she started to hear her mother’s voice ever so faintly speaking her name. _

_But it wasn’t a hallucination like Polly initially suspected. Alice opened the bedroom door. Her eyes landed on her eldest daughter who had since sat up. _

_“Mom?” Polly asked into the darkness._

_“Polly. Oh it is you.” Alice gushed before running to her daughter’s side. “We have to go Sweetheart. I’m going to take you somewhere safe.” She promised, turning toward FP who was standing in the doorway, acting as lookout._

_“Come on Honey, get your clothes on so we can go.” Alice prompted._

_Polly didn’t know where her original clothing had gone to, but she had been given a uniform so she pulled the blue dress on over her head and went to fetch her shoes._

_Alice waited for her and held out her hand toward the girl when she was finished. “We have to hurry. They’ll be changing the security guards over soon.” She whispered._

_Polly wanted to know how Alice knew so much, but the words her father had said in the car flashed into her memory again. Alice had come here once too. That’s how she knew how to find her._

_She rushed out of the room with Alice and Mr Jones, who was there for some unknown reason. She didn’t have time to ask why before the three of them started to run for their lives._

* * *

_Jason was growing increasingly worried as time continued to pass and Polly never showed at their meeting spot._

_“Just give her a few more minutes.” Cheryl suggested. She knew Polly, and knew the girl was probably just running a little late. _

_He nodded his head and paced between the trees. They had to cross the river by boat so as soon as they left Polly couldn’t just catch up. She needed to be there and she wasn’t. The whole reason they were leaving this way was to protect Polly from her father, and she didn’t even bother to show up. He didn’t stop to consider the fact that Polly’s nightmare may have come true. He just kept thinking she didn’t want to come with them._

_His assumptions seemed to ring true when a message from Polly’s number came through to his burner phone. He always used the same spare number whenever his parents took his phone from him. Every so often they decided they wanted to act like real parents and would confiscate things like his phone, or his car. It wasn’t really effective since had had a spare phone, and not having a car never stopped him going anywhere. _

_‘Sorry Jason, I can’t be with you. I’m leaving you.’ The message read._

_Jason felt sick as he reread the message. His eyes narrowed and he turned toward his sister. “Let’s go.” He said coldly._

_“Without Polly?” Cheryl asked in confusion. _

_They stood at the riverbed where their rowboat was resting just against the shore. Jason threw his bag in, before tossing Cheryl’s in on top of it. “Without Polly. Let’s go.” He said, gesturing for her to get into the boat, _

_Cheryl didn’t know why he was so eager to leave if Polly wasn’t accompanying him. It just didn’t seem like him at all. She stepped onto the boat and waited for her brother to push it out._

_It was still dark out and that meant it was a little cold. She wrapped her arms around herself and watched as her brother started to push the boat out onto the water. _

_He jumped in when the boat was resting entirely on the water. He took the oars and started rowing them out into the river._

_Cheryl closed her eyes and rubbed her hands up and down her arms to try and warm herself up. She didn’t know where they were going but she felt a sense of peace wash over her. This was her first taste of freedom._

* * *

_There was a point of time that Alice felt like they were moving in slow motion. That moment where they had almost been caught. She felt like everything was about to fall apart, and the despair that entered her bloodstream had made her feel like sobbing. There was no time for that, and when FP yanked her hand after the coast had been cleared by some kind of miracle, the three of them made it back to the tunnels without so much of a hint of trouble in their path. _

_They each kept quiet until they were hit with fresh air on their faces, and they were breathing it into their lungs. _

_It was close to sunrise as they walked back to FP’s truck. All three of them were exhausted and Alice was fearful that Hal would be home wondering why the house was empty. She was too tired to come up with an excuse. At this point she felt like she didn’t even owe him one. He did this to their family, and she didn’t care enough to pretend to be happy anymore._

_They made it to the car and Alice slid into the middle seat so Polly could rest against the window. _

_“She can stay with me.” FP whispered after they’d been on the road a short while and Polly had fallen asleep again._

_“Thank you, FP.” Alice said to him sincerely. She had no idea how she was going to repay the man for his kindness. She didn’t think she deserved it._

_“No need to thank me Alice.” He whispered as he placed a gentle hand upon her knee._

_“He did the same to me.” She whispered. “His mother sent me to the same place when I was in high school. When I had your baby.” She said all of this with her eyes closed. She was so afraid of his anger and disappointment. She knew she didn’t deserve his kindness and should have told him all of this a long time ago._

_“My baby?” He asked, voice delicate and frail._

_“Our baby.” She confirmed in an equally as fragile tone._

_His hand didn’t shift from her knee, but she knew he wasn’t okay. She knew this by the sound of his breathing as it changed. She recognised that as when he would try so hard not to cry in high school. That had always been when he got injured playing football, or when his mother left his family. She knew FP better than she’d like to admit. A lot had changed since high school, but she still knew the man like the back of her own hand. _

_“A girl?” He asked quietly._

_“A little boy.” She said with the shake of her head. “I named him Charles.”_

_“After your father.” He nodded. _

_“You named your kids after yours.” She pointed out._

_FP nodded again. “So I did.” He said distantly._

_“I should have told you.”_

_“You just did.” He pointed out._

* * *

_The sun poked it’s head out over the horizon as Jason’s arms started to tire. It was still cold but this was their only option as they had already committed to this journey. He knew his sister was cold but she hadn’t complained once. “If you want to get a jacket out you can.” He told her, hoping she would be more comfortable that way._

_Cheryl nodded and reached forward to unzip her bag. The bed of water they were approaching was rougher than their journey had been so far. She held onto the side of the boat to steady herself with one hand while her brother tried to manoeuvre them through the bed of rocks._

_Jason was doing a good job at keeping them upright through this rougher section, but he wasn’t the greatest at water based transport so he was thankful the sun was starting to rise so he had the natural light as his guide._

_Cheryl leaned forward to finish unzipping her bag. She let go of the side of the boat to push her arms into the sleeves of her coat. _

_The impact of the boat hitting a large rock cause their boat to tilt sideways. Cheryl held onto her bag, not wanting it to fall into the river. She had to walk away from a bedroom full of her belongings, she wasn’t about to let the last of her belongings drift down the river to get lost forever._

_Jason used the oars to try and tip them upright. His foot was the only part of him responsible for keeping his own bag from falling out._

_Gravity was fighting against the both of them as their boat kept wanting to tip all the way over._

_“Cheryl forget the bags!” Jason called out to her as he struggled to push their boat upright. He needed her help, but her arms were occupied. His bag started to fall, and his foot slipped enough for it to thud out of the boat and start drifting down stream._

_“There are Louis Vuitton’s in this bag JJ!” She said back to him. _

_“Help me or we’ll be in the river with it.” He said in frustration. _

_Cheryl did her best to hold onto the bag with her knees as she reached up to try and shift her weight where Jason needed her help. _

_A body of water came seemingly out of nowhere, throwing both twins off balance and tipping them and Cheryl’s bag out of the boat entirely._

_The boy found himself thrashing around to try and stay afloat. “Cheryl?” He called out when he wasn’t able to find her._

_The boat had fallen upside down. He swam across the river, thinking his sister had been trapped underneath it. He frantically tried to push it upright with no success. He took in a deep breath before expelling himself beneath the water with a deep dive. He swam under the upturned boat, arms and legs kicking around in desperation as he swam in search of his sister. _

_The water kept pushing him and the boat further downstream, and Jason still couldn’t find his sister. _

_He called out her name over and over._

_But Cheryl was nowhere to be found._

* * *

_Alice tucked Polly into bed at the trailer. She kissed the sleeping girl’s head and left her peacefully asleep._

_After she had closed the door, Alice walked out into the kitchen where FP had two mugs of coffee sitting on the table._

_“You’re sure Jughead won’t mind?” Alice asked him as she sat down._

_“He doesn’t live here.” FP admitted to her. _

_“What do you mean?” She asked with a frown. She wrapped her hands around the hot mug of coffee as she waited for his answer._

_“We had a few rough patches over the last year. He sleeps elsewhere for now. He’ll come home soon. I know he will.” FP said with a small smile. All he wanted was his son to come home. That’s all he wanted. _

_“I’m sure he will.” Alice nodded, hoping that to be true._

_“Polly can stay here as long as you need.” He told her, hoping to move the conversation away from himself. He had a lot of self-deprecating feelings he preferred not to open up with in present company. _

_“Thank you.” Alice said as she sipped the hot liquid._

_The sun had risen by then and Alice needed to go to bed. She would head home soon, she just needed to make sure Polly was somewhere safe first. The safest place for her to be was with FP for now. That was the only comfort she could take right now. He was their savour and she could never thank him enough._

* * *

_Jason had no other choice than to go back home with his tail between his legs. His parents had no idea the twins had even attempted to run away as neither of them had left a note the way Polly had. _

_He managed to sleep for a couple of hours, although they weren’t uninterrupted, nor very peaceful hours. He was ridden with guilt. He believed he had killed his sister, and for that he would never forgive himself. There was no other explanation as to how Cheryl was there one moment and gone the next. He kept replaying it all in his mind over and over. All he could conclude was that his sister was gone, and there was no way he could ever admit to being there with her. He didn’t want anyone to know he had anything to do with what happened to her. He had spent an hour searching for her, and all he could recover were their bags. He tossed them into a trash can before he made his way home again. It took him a while to walk back to his car, but the morning summer sun dried him off enough to make it a more bearable journey. He slept most of the afternoon and only got out of bed because the doorbell sounded, and it seemed he was the only one to hear it._

_He didn’t feel up for visitors so if it was anyone, he knew he would be perfectly okay with telling them to leave. _

_When he opened the door a very pretty girl stood in the doorway. He didn’t know who it was, or why they were on his doorstep but a part of him felt like it might have been his lucky day. The opposite of that was true of course, and that point only because truer when she opened her mouth._

_“Is Cheryl in? We were supposed to meet up today, but she won’t answer her phone. I got worried.” She said to the boy with a concerned expression._

_Jason recognised the girl from a photo Cheryl had in her room. He also noticed the necklace dangling from her neck. His sister wore one almost identical, apart from the difference in words. Cheryl’s said ‘soul’ and this girl’s read ‘mates’ _

_“Who are you?” He asked her with a suspicious frown._

_“I’m Heather, her girlfriend.” She answered with a shy little smile. “Cheryl’s told me so much about you, Jason.” _

_He was about to tell her he knew nothing about her, but that idea got scrapped when he realised Heather was going to be a problem. When Cheryl never showed up, she would keep coming back and asking questions._

_“I know where she is.” He said to the girl with a smile. “She’s gone to therapy. I’ll give you the address, just tell them you’re her girlfriend and they’ll let you wait in there for her.” He said, walking back inside to find his phone. He came back after finding the address he was looking for. _

_“The facility is called the Sisters of Quiet Mercy, you won’t be able to miss it.” He assured her._

_“Thank you so much.” Heather said with a big smile._

_“Take care now.” He said to her, waving as she went back to her car._

_Jason closed the front door and went back to his bedroom as if he hadn’t just given that girl a first-class ticket to hell. _

_He didn’t have anything to lose at this point, because Jason felt like he had already lost everything. _


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jughead nudged his foot against her back as if telling her to be quiet. It wasn’t helping anyone making comments like that. He walked across the grass to where Betty was standing aimlessly.
> 
> “Hey.” He whispered as he stepped closer to took hold of both of her hands. “They’ll both be okay.” He said softly
> 
> She nodded her head, feeling herself starting to calm down from the small comfort he was bringing her. It was a small gesture, but it helped her focus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the LAST chapter.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has been reading from the start. It's taking almost a month to complete this fic, and I can't believe I actually finished it!
> 
> Let me know if you liked it, and if you'd want me to write a sequel!

Hal Cooper was a man on a mission. He had never been one to take failure lightly. His daughter had run off with the Blossom boy and he had ever intentions on returning her from Jason’s clutches. He had never liked the boy, or his self-absorbed sister. He had no idea how his daughter considered either one of them appropriate or appealing company. He blamed both of them for his daughter’s predicament, despite knowing Cheryl had no part in impregnating Polly he still held her responsible somehow. If he could go back in time and forbid his daughter from joining that cheerleading squad, he would do so in a flash. His wife always disapproved of their daughter’s extra-curricular, but Hal had a soft spot for Polly and let her join simply because she wanted to. He knew better than that now. He should have listened to his father’s advice long ago, when the man told him children only respected a parent when they knew their place, when they were made to obey instead of being treated as equals. He should have listened instead of letting Polly manipulate him into being so lenient. He wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

He sped across town to Thornhill with the intentions of dragging Polly home where he could keep her there and throw away the key. He had experience in such matters now, and he was better equipped at keeping troubled youth inline. He parked in the courtyard and marched up to the front entryway.

He knew Clifford was still out of town because Hal was still in touch with Penelope. She trusted him and he was going to use that to his advantage in this instance.

Penelope answered the door when she heard the doorbell chime. She typically would have let one of her staff do so, but she had been walking past on her way back to her bedroom when the man made himself known.

“Harold, what a surprise.” She greeted, eyes running over the man who looked quite a state standing in front of her. His hair was a mess, and his jacket looked as though it had been thrown on last minute. He didn’t look like he usually did, and it was something she noticed straight away.

“Where is he?” Hal demanded.

Penelope frowned at his rough tone. “Who?” She asked with pursed lips.

“Jason.” Hal said in frustration. “He has Polly, and I’m taking her home with me.”

Penelope’s frown deepened. “I assure you that girl is not here.” She didn’t know why Hal had arrived on her doorstep in this state, but the man couldn’t come around throwing accusations around about her beloved son this way.

“She is.” Hal insisted, pushing past her so he could go and find the couple himself.

Penelope rushed after him, trying to defuse the situation before it escalated. She recognised the fury in the man and was afraid of what he may do to her son if things got out of hand.

“Which one is his?” Hal asked as they approached the top of the staircase.

Penelope hesitated, not wanting to assist him after his rude intrusion.

“Which one?” He snapped, looking at the woman in annoyance.

“Jason!” She called out desperately. She hoped the boy had attempted one of his disappearing acts. Jason was under the impression that she was unaware of his sneaking out of the house, but she knew all about it, and never spoke of it. He always came home and stayed out of trouble, so she didn’t see a need to punish him for doing what boys did best.

The teenager emerged from his room in only a pair of boxer shorts which was a quick decision he immediately regretted when he realised the situation he had walked into.

“Jason. Please tell this man that his daughter is not here.” Penelope said to him. Her eyes pleaded with her son, hoping that her words were indeed true. The last thing she wanted was to disrupt the relationship she had with Hal. He had been good to her for quite some time. She respected the man, and didn’t want to be caught out in a lie.

Jason crossed his arms over his chest. “He’s not taking Polly.” He said instead of whatever it was his mother wanted to hear.

She let out an incredulous sigh. “Jason. You can’t keep her here. She has her own family.” Penelope said to him. She must admit she did feel some disappointment. Veronica had seemed better suited for her son than Polly ever had.

“He tried to force her to abort our baby! And then sent her to some facility to give it away!” He exclaimed. “If you think I’m going to let him take her, then you both have another thing coming. We’re moving far away from both of you.”

Penelope’s eyes widened before her face fell. She turned toward Hal with her shoulders slumped forward. “Is this true?” She asked, betrayal washing over her. She thought they were a team. He had kept this from her and it made her feel like everything between them was a lie.

“Penelope.” Hal sighed. “Of course not.”

Hal’s attempts at damage control would have worked if it wasn’t for two teenagers working against him. He underestimated the bond Penelope shared with her son, nor the disdain Polly had toward her father after everything he had put her through.

“It is true.” Polly said as she walked out of the bedroom she had been hiding in before.

Penelope turned her head toward the girl, eyes falling immediately to the swollen belly where her grandchild was still alive and well. “Polly.” She whispered, tears beginning to well in her eyes. This changed everything for her. Jason was to be a father, and that baby needed to be protected at all costs.

Jason stepped back and wrapped his arms around his girlfriend’s shoulders. “We’re getting married, and we’re going to raise this baby.” He said directly toward Hal who was still fuming by the staircase.

“It’s time for you to leave, Hal.” Penelope said coldly to their unwanted houseguest.

Hal’s eyes narrowed as he looked at her.

“I said it’s time for you to leave.” Penelope repeated, anger pulsing through her. She pointed toward the staircase with a stern expression across her face.

Hal shook his head at the woman. This wasn’t the end. He wasn’t going to fail a third time. He marched down the staircase muttering to himself as he vowed to succeed. He wasn’t going to be made a fool of by this family, and by the time he got back to his car, he knew exactly how he would get his revenge.

* * *

Alice knocked on Betty’s bedroom door with a tray full of food in her hands. Toni opened the door and held it open for the woman to have enough room to walk in. Alice set the food down on her daughter’s desk and looked across the room to where Betty, Jughead and Veronica were sitting in various positions on the bed.

“You weren’t up all night, were you?” She asked, placing her hands upon her hips.

Betty looked up from her laptop distractedly. “No, we slept for a while.” She answered before her eyes moved back to her computer screen.

“Good.” Alice nodded. “I made you some food, you need sustenance.” The woman reminded. She was worried about Betty who seemed obsessed with this whole Cheryl situation. She wanted to shut down the SOQM as much as anyone else did, but she could sense a burn out coming. “Betty, promise me you won’t go getting yourself in any trouble with this.” She said gently. The last thing they needed was for any of them to get themselves arrested or put into any real danger.

“Mom.” Betty sighed. “Something happened to Cheryl. I know you never liked her, but if the sisters are involved then you know that means we have to do something.”

Alice nodded. “I know, I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“We’ll take care of her Mrs Cooper.” Veronica promised kindly.

Alice nodded. She didn’t know what else she could do to ensure her daughter was safe. She walked across to open the window to let some light in.

“Oh look, Archie’s opened his blinds again.” She commented before turning to leave.

Betty looked up from her computer and glanced across to the window. This was the first time the boy had opened his blinds since he started icing her out. She hoped that meant he was ready to forgive her. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking of Archie though, so she turned her attention back to her computer screen where she had been searching through forums reading posts made by previous victims of the sisters. Most of it was heartbreaking to get through, but none of them had the time to be getting emotional. They each had looked through different websites and posts trying to find as many facts as they could to figure out their next move, and hopefully find out what had happened to Cheryl.

“I found something!” Jughead said loud enough to turn all three heads. He moved his computer screen to show the girls. “Her name is Heather, she’s from Greendale.” He told them as he scrolled through her blog. “And I found a post with photos of Cheryl. I think they were dating.”

“Wait, Cheryl had a girlfriend?” Betty asked in disbelief. She never once suspected that Cheryl was gay. The girl was always bragging about how many boys asked for her phone number, and constantly made comments on how she knew what boys liked in a girl, and which girls would never get a boyfriend. Betty had been naïve to the believe Cheryl’s behaviour had been true to her own heart, instead of being a front to protect herself from the world knowing how she really felt.

“Okay so Cheryl’s girlfriend ends up at the sisters, that doesn’t explain why she’s listed as Cheryl in these files.” Veronica pointed out.

Toni knelt down against the mattress with her arms folded against her chest. “Maybe Jason didn’t tell us everything after all.” She said, raising her eyebrows.

* * *

Jason read over the new messages he had received since Hal had left. They didn’t look any different to the other threatening messages he had gotten over the past few months, which didn’t make any sense. Hal had been so angry when he left and Jason thought he would have taken it out on him with more threats.

Polly was in the bathroom when a blocked number called him. He hesitated before answering. “Hal, I swear if you try and take Polly again, we’ll leave town and you’ll never see us again.” He said down the line.

“Jason?” Betty asked, confused by how he greeted her.

“Betty? Sorry. I thought you were...” He sighed, feeling embarrassed and still entirely on edge.

“Did my dad do something to Polly?” She asked, feeling worried all of a sudden.

Jason quickly filled her in, figuring there was no use in keeping it a secret. The more people who cared about Polly who knew about it, the better. “You should tell your mom.” He added, hoping Betty would do that so he didn’t have to.

“I will.” Betty said. “But I need to ask you something first. It’s about Heather.” She said quietly.

Jason felt nauseous as soon as the name was spoken. He didn’t know what to do. Betty hadn’t even asked anything specific yet and he already felt sick to his stomach. “Heather?” He asked, playing dumb.

“Your sister’s girlfriend. She’s in the Sister’s of Quiet Mercy under Cheryl’s name.” Betty explained. “I was wondering if you had something else you forgot to mention.”

Jason was ever so tempted to end the call right there and then. His eyes darted toward the bathroom door and he let out a shaky breath. “I sent her there.” He admitted. He could have gone to his grave with that secret, but Betty was the type of person who could haunt you while still being alive. He knew she would just keep nagging until he caved in, and all of these secrets were eating away at him anyway.

“You sent her there?” Betty asked, just wanting to confirm what she had just heard.

“She came looking for Cheryl, and I knew she wouldn’t find her here so I told her where to go.” He said, feeling guiltier because that was still only half the story.

“Jason, where is Cheryl?” Betty asked him point blank.

“I don’t know Betty. I don’t know. I looked for her but she was gone. She just vanished.” He said in a shaky voice. He was on the verge of tears and anyone within hearing distance would have been able to figure that out.

“It’s okay.” She whispered, trying to calm him down. “Just tell me what happened.”

* * *

When FP pulled up on the outskirts of Sweetwater River, Alice was already waiting for him with her back pressed against a tree.

She walked over to where he was just getting out of his truck.

“So this is the spot?” He asked, looking around them before his eyes settled on the waterbed.

Alice nodded. “Apparently so.” She said with a sigh. “Jason says the three of them were supposed to meet here. They were going to row out to the next meeting spot, but Hal took Polly before she could get here.” She explained, walking across to where the water was gently crashing against the grass.

“Poor kid.” FP said. It was something he never thought he’d ever say about Jason Blossom and yet there they were. He just felt bad for the boy. He wanted to do right by his girl, and his sister and everything turned against him.

“Which way did they head out?” He asked, wanting to do his best to help Alice find whatever she needed to.

“Well It’s a little hard to tell. It was dark and he said they got into some trouble with some rocks in the water.” She said, pointing out across the water.

“I think I know just the spot.” FP told her. “We can get close to it by car, will save some time.” He told her.

The two adults walked back to FP’s truck. Alice had been dropped off so she jumped in with him.

FP focused on the road at first, letting the silence fall between them until he couldn’t stand the sound of his own breathing. “You know we never really talked about that night.” He said, keeping his eyes forward as he spoke.

“I know. I’m sorry about that. I dropped something so heavy on you and it got lost underneath everything else that happened.” She said in an apologetic tone. She truly felt bad for how it all came up. She had thought about it a lot over the years and she never once imagined telling him in a car after rescuing her daughter from the same fate.

“I don’t have any ill feelings toward you Alice.” He told her straight away. He needed her to know that whatever pain she had caused hadn’t turned into resentment. He knew she had held herself accountable for it over the last 20 years. He couldn’t punish her any more than she had already punished herself.

“I’m still so sorry.” She whispered.

He reached out one hand and placed it upon her leg. “I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to find out what happened to him…”

Alice shook her head. “No. I mean I always wondered but they told me it was a closed adoption. I could never find out what happened to him.”

“I found him.” FP said after pausing for a moment.

“You what?” She asked, turning to look at the man in confusion. She was sure she heard him incorrectly.

“I found our son.” He said in a more precise tone.

“How?” She asked. “I don’t understand.”

“An old army buddy of mine. He’s now working as a P.I.” He explained quickly. “And maybe you don’t want to meet him or try to, but I wanted you to know that you can if you want to. If you’re ready to.”

Alice didn’t know what to say. It felt so sudden and a part of her felt as though she didn’t deserve to know her son at all.

“Stop the car.” She said to him quickly.

FP frowned. He hadn’t meant to upset her. “I’m sorry. I should have asked first.”

“No. Stop the car!” She said, looking forward to where a girl was standing by the side of the road.

* * *

“They’d recognise me.” Jughead pointed out.

The group had been trying to figure out how they could get into the sisters without causing a scene. When the girls had snuck in the last time they’d gotten lucky. They wanted something that would give them an advantage, and for now that seemed to include one of them going undercover as an impatient.

“Okay, so that leaves Veronica and Toni.” Betty noted. She was obviously out since Sister Woodhouse knew all about Betty and her whole family.

“I mean I could do it I guess.” Veronica said with a shrug. “I starred in our school’s production of Grease back in New York.” She said

“Oh yeah, who’d you play?” Toni asked with an intrigued smile.

Veronica turned toward her in delight. “I was Rizzo.” She said proudly.

Toni nodded, impressed. “I can see it.”

She grinned. “You’re not the only girl who can make being in a gang look chic.”

Betty turned toward Jughead and the pair shared a look. He cleared his throat. “Maybe we can talk about musicals later.” He suggested.

“Right. Sorry.” Veronica nodded. “But I can do it. If someone needs to be admitted, I’ll do it.” She offered.

“Only if you’re sure, I mean it sounds like everyone in these forums went through some really dark things. I don’t want to force you into it.” Betty said, reaching for the other girl’s hand.

Veronica shook her head. “Betty. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it.” She assured the girl. The truth was the whole thing made her anxious, but she was willing to do it to help the poor girl who was sent there for no reason other than loving someone who went missing.

“We’ll get you out of there as soon as possible.” Toni promised Veronica, taking her other hand.

Veronica looked down at the serpent hand holding onto her own. She felt a little better knowing her safety was in the hands of someone like Toni.

“So it’s settled then? Veronica’s going undercover?” Jughead asked. This wasn’t the mission they had started out with but now they knew the whole story, none of them could turn a blind eye to what had happened to Heather, and if Cheryl really was dead like Jason believed, then the least they could do was to rescue the girl who owned her heart. It’s what Cheryl would have wanted. They all knew it.

“I’m going undercover.” Veronica agreed, squeezing both of the girls’ hands as she said so.

* * *

Jason felt somewhat uneasy about leaving Polly at home while he went out to fetch her some of her cravings. He should have sent someone else out for them, but he felt like he needed to take care of her now he was able to do so. This was a mistake on his part, one that he should have seen coming.

He didn’t expect an attack on himself and that was a missight that Hal used to his advantage.

The last thing Jason remembered was walking groceries back to his car, and when he came to again, he was tied up in a room he didn’t recognise.

The boy wiggled and wriggled to try and loosen his restraints. He called out Hal’s name, but nobody would appear when he did so. He tried tipping his chair over so he could attempt to use the wall to push himself free, but every time he tried he got too tired before the last push. He decided the best thing he could do was wait a little longer, give himself a rest before attempting again.

Without having any sense of time, it was hard for the teen to gage how long he had been there and if any time had even passed since he had been conscious. He didn’t know if it had been ten minutes or two hours. It felt like forever, but he had never been good at estimating time. He heard footsteps and tried to break one of his hands free before Hal could come and hurt him. He was still trying to break free when the door opened. His chair was facing the opposite direction so he couldn’t see the figure who had stepped in through the door way. He heard her voice long before he saw who it was. He really didn’t know what shocked him more. Hearing her or seeing her when she finally appeared in front of his face.

“Dear Jason, I know what you did last summer, and soon so will everyone else.” Cheryl said as she stood over her brother who sat pathetically tied to a chair.

“Dear Jason, your secrets won’t stay at the bottom of the river for long.” She quoted, smiling sinisterly this time.

“Oh JJ. You really thought a river could kill me? If Penelope Blossom couldn’t take me down, Sweetwater River didn’t stand a chance.” She said sweetly, leaning over the chair to get closer to him.

“You left me all alone.” She snapped, words hitting him in the face. “You left me and then you sent my girlfriend to the sisters!”

“Cheryl.” He whimpered. “I’m sorry.”

She pulled back and clicked her tongue. “Sorry doesn’t take back what you did, now does it?” She asked him with a pain filled voice.

Jason knew he had hurt the person who meant the most to him. He knew it then and he knew it now. He just never for a second expected her to want to hurt him in return. They’d always been two peas in a pod and now he was getting punished for something that he would have never done to her on purpose.

“I looked for you for hours!” He promised.

“You sent Heather to gay conversion, you monster!” She yelled back at him. “You did that on purpose. You did that to cover up your mistakes.”

“I know!” He cried out, tears forming in his eyes. “I know what I did! I know. I know. I know!”

Cheryl took a step backwards. She knew Jason better than anyone and could always tell when he was telling the truth, and when he had remorse for something he had done. She knew he felt bad for what he did and for a moment she wanted to forgive him for all of it, and just let him go.

“Cheryl. I see our guest has woken.” Hal said from the doorway.

The girl looked up at him and smiled. “He has. We were just talking about the bad, bad things he did.” She told.

Hal nodded his head and walked further into the room to join her.

“You!” Jason said in anger. “You had her this whole time?” He accused.

Hal chuckled. “If it weren’t for me, your dear sister would have been fish food. I saved her life, unlike you, the one who endangered it in the first place. Now imagine if my Polly had joined you that very evening and fell to her death too…” Hal said, tapping his chin as he pretended to mull over that possibility.

Jason thrashed in his seat as he tried to break himself free. “You’re a sick bastard!” He yelled out at the man.

Cheryl shook her head. “No, JJ. He saved me.”

Jason stopped his movements and looked at his sister once again. “No, he didn’t. He kidnapped you, made everyone think you were dead.”

Cheryl laughed. “Kidnapped? You always had an overactive imagination.”

* * *

“I’m telling you I saw Cheryl Blossom.” Alice insisted as FP followed her through the forest toward the rocky cliff face FP believed to be where Cheryl and Jason capsized.

“I said I believed you Alice.” FP sighed as he glanced back just in case, they weren’t alone.

When he had stopped the car, nobody had been anywhere in sight, but Alice had insisted she had seen the girl. FP didn’t believe in spirits or the supernatural, but he was beginning to question whether or not he should at least be opened to the possibility.

Alice wasn’t convinced that he did believe her, but she didn’t feel like pushing him too hard right now. They made it to the edge of the river, and she caught her breath after their long walk.

“It’s been months. There might be no evidence left.” He reminded her as Alice went to look around.

“I know but if this were your kid wouldn’t you want to be sure? The Sheriff’s department did nothing, and we all know it.” Alice said as she went to look over the edge of the steep decline.

FP took a few steps back to see if he could find anything through the trees. “Keller is nice and all, but being a cop wasn’t his calling.” He called across to her as he walked.

Alice laughed to herself as she kept looking around.

* * *

Smithers had been under the employ of the Lodges for many years, and although technically he worked for Veronica, it made him feel extremely uncomfortable doing what she had asked of him. He was afraid of Hiram Lodge having his head. The man was very powerful and had a temper. If something went wrong with this scheme, he wouldn’t hesitate to have the man’s head for it. Veronica insisted she wouldn’t let anything go wrong, and although it scared him half to death the man played his role regardless. He helped the girl get admitted into the facility as a patient in need of therapy and it was as easy as that.

After hours of questioning, Veronica was finally escorted to her own room where she was left to her own devices. It all made her feel awfully uncomfortable, but she didn’t want to let anyone down. The plan was simple enough. She was to keep herself out of trouble, blend in until she found Heather and helped take her down to the tunnels where the others would meet them.

Veronica had repeated the plans over and over in her mind but it was all easier said than done. The other night had been a fluke, they had gotten away with it out of pure luck. For all they knew, Sister Woodhouse was onto them. She was working herself up into a sweat just thinking about it.

The one difference between the maternity wing of the facility and the conversion wing was the lack of mingling. Veronica was to remain in her room for most of her stay, only interacting with the other patients while supervised at meal times. She had been briefed on it during her extensive admittance.

She felt like a child being called to dinner when the sun was still in the sky. At home she wouldn’t eat until late. That’s how they did things in New York, and nothing had changed since moving. Veronica kept her head down as she walked to the dining room. Everyone was dressed the same way. Girls in blue dresses, boys in blue pants. They looked like they were in a fancy boarding school which was where Veronica kept trying to pretend she was. She couldn’t get her mind off of all of those stories she had read over the last 18 hours. The horror stories that sounded just like they were from a scary movie, instead of real life. She felt like she was walking the halls of a haunted house, when in reality she was just walking down the halls of an evil building filled with innocent people being tortured for no reason at all.

She took her tray to the front and watched as the kitchen staff loaded it up with food. She saw Heather after scanning the room and walked across to sit at her table. She sat down next to the girl, who seemed startled by the company.

“You can’t sit there.” The girl told her.

“Oh. Is this seat taken?” Veronica asked, moving to stand up.

Heather shook her head. “No, but we can’t sit next to each other. You’re a girl. We have to have one seat between us.”

Veronica thought that was the most absurd thing she had ever heard, but she moved across one seat regardless. “I’m Veronica.”

“Heather.” She said with a weak smile.

“I know you don’t know me, but I know why you’re here.” Veronica whispered, wanting to be discreet but it was hard when they had such a space between them.

“You know why all of us are here. It’s not that hard to figure out.” Heather said between mouthfuls.

“No. I know what Jason did.” Veronica corrected.

Heather dropped her fork as her hand began to shake. “Who told you?”

“He told my friend Betty. Her sister is Jason’s girlfriend.” Veronica told her, trying to explain it in the simplest way she could.

“I know who Polly is.” She nodded. “But I don’t know why he would tell her sister anything.”

“It’s a lot to explain, but Betty sent me here to help get you out of here.” She whispered. “Tonight.”

* * *

“Do you think we made the right choice?” Betty asked Jughead as they went into his trailer. He needed to change his clothes, and Toni was changing into something else at her uncle’s trailer while they were all waiting around to meet up with Veronica.

“With what?” Jughead asked as he found a fresh shirt to change into.

“Sending Veronica in there. I just feel like it was a risky move. What if they do something to her?” Betty asked.

“We’ll get her out of there.” He reassured her. “She volunteered. It’s not like we forced her into it. I know it’s not the best option, but we had to take a risk, it was the right thing to do for Heather.” He said sweetly.

Betty nodded. She knew he was right, but it still made her feel guilty for sending Veronica in by herself. She just wished they had another option. If she could have gone in undetected, she would have done so instead.

Jughead pulled his shirt up over his head so he could change into his fresh one. Betty adverted her eyes. Her cheeks warmed up after seeing the boy without his shirt for half a moment. She had seen Archie shirtless many times before, but this felt different. It made her feel nervous, and that was something she hadn’t felt before with a boy. Archie had always been an infatuation on her part, this was different somehow.

“You ready to go?” Jughead asked, interrupting her thoughts.

Betty turned back to him and nodded. She couldn’t quite bring herself to speak. She just kept thinking about how she wouldn’t mind seeing him without a shirt again sometime.

* * *

When Alice and FP finally gave up on their search for clues, they decided it was time to head back into town. Alice intended on stopping by Thornhill even though she’d rather stick pins in her eyes than have to spend five minutes with Penelope Blossom.

They were let in through the front gate and FP parked his truck outside the front door. Alice got out first and waited for the man to get out too. She didn’t want to go in on her own, they were in this together and she needed him to stay by her side for as long as humanly possible.

When they were let in by the staff, they were informed that everyone was in the garden drinking tea.

FP felt in out of his depth. This wasn’t his scene at all. He followed Alice as they were led out to the rose garden. Penelope sat with Nana Rose, and Polly who after years of trying was now being treated like family.

“Well, isn’t this something.” Alice said dryly as they approached the table.

“My oh my. I haven’t seen the two of you together since high school.” Penelope sniped in return.

Alice rolled her eyes before looking over at Polly. “Is she being nice to you here? Because if she isn’t you can tell me, and the serpent king here will do something about it.”

Polly chuckled. “I’m fine mom, I promise.”

Alice nodded and turned back toward Penelope. “I heard about Hal. I would say I’m sorry, but it’s to my understanding that you’ve been screwing him, so…” She shrugged.

“Must you be so crude in front of my mother in law?” Penelope asked. “And my grandbaby.”

Alice snickered. “I thought she lost her marbles already?” She asked, pulling out a seat so she could sit down.

Penelope shrugged. “Oh, who am I kidding, she has.” She said with a small laugh.

FP sat down next to Alice and made himself as comfortable as he could in a very uncomfortable situation. He gave Polly a small smile when the girl smiled across at him first.

“Harold never told me about the baby. If he had, I would have made sure our dear Polly was being looked after.” Penelope told Alice. “Instead of letting him do a foolish thing like sending her to those nuns.” She tutted.

“It’s better the baby is here than being sold onto the black market.” Nana Rose said matter of a factly.

Alice frowned. “Sold? What are you on about?”

“Don’t listen to the old bat, she doesn’t know what she’s saying half the time.” Penelope rolled her eyes and took a sip from her tea.

Nana Rose didn’t pay Penelope any attention. “The babies. When nobody wants them, they make big dollars selling them. How do you think they’ve stayed in business all of these years?” She asked Alice.

Alice felt sick. She knew from FP that her own son had been adopted, but if he hadn’t, she hated to think of what may have happened to him. She turned her head as her stomach began to ache and threw up right there on the grass.

Penelope pulled a face. “Will somebody clean that up?” She asked one of her staff before taking a bite of her biscotti.

* * *

It was unusual for a car of any description to be left unattended the way Jason Blossom’s range rover had been. The door had been left opened, his grocery bag of Polly’s cravings had fallen, and items had been scattered across the pavement. A pint of ice cream had melted out onto the street and started to smell after being left there for hours. The Sheriff had been called to the scene to investigate the unusual sighting reported by a concerned citizen who had been walking their dog.

When the Sheriff realised who the vehicle belonged to he thought his day couldn’t get any worse. Not only did he have to report another missing child, he had to report another missing child to the same family. He drove across town to Thornhill, regretting the news he had to share with the Blossoms.

He didn’t expect there to be company, so he felt somewhat awkward when he walked out into the garden.

Alice was feeling much better after her incident but seeing the sheriff didn’t have anything to do with that. He made her feel uneasy in a whole new way.

“Mrs Blossom can I speak to you in private?” Tom asked.

Penelope sighed and moved to stand up. “If you’ll excuse us.” She said before she led the sheriff inside so they could speak privately.

“Do you think they found Cheryl?” Polly asked her mother quietly.

“I don’t know Honey.” Alice said to her, unsure of what else it could be.

“Cheryl? No. Hal and Penelope took Cheryl to the nuns to take the gay away.” Nana Rose whispered, joining in on the secret conversation.

Alice already knew about the plan to send Cheryl to the sisters. Betty and her friends had already figured that out. What she didn’t know was that Hal had something to do with it. That alarmed her, and she didn’t even need to look up at Polly to know her daughter was upset by that too. She knew Polly and the missing girl had been friends, and her daughter was already struggling with what Hal had already done so far, but this put him in a new light altogether. He was out there hurting all kinds of people, and for what reason? Alice didn’t have an answer, but what she did have was a bad feeling in her stomach. This time it probably wasn’t going to make her throw up, which was the only good thing to come out of this.

When a blood curdling scream came from inside the house, they all rushed in to see what had happened.

“Jason! My Jason!” The woman sobbed as Tom Keller caught her mid collapse. She was hysterical and Alice couldn’t really blame her. She turned to Polly who looked every bit as worried as you’d expect.

FP placed a hand on the girl’s back and whispered that it would be alright.

“What happened to my fiancé?” Polly asked the sheriff, who was only now noticing the pregnant belly the teen had been hiding underneath the table.

“We believe he’s been abducted.” Tom said to her gently.

* * *

When Jughead parked the Cooper family car behind a group of trees, the three teens trekked into the forest to find the tunnel once again. Betty was beginning to get nervous. She really hoped nothing went wrong because if Veronica got trapped in the sisters, she didn’t know what she’d do. She just kept thinking about Hermione, the waitress who was working a shift right now with no idea that her daughter was undercover in a conversion wing at an evil facility hidden deep into the woods.

Toni kept stopping to check if Betty was okay but every time she asked, Betty just smiled and assured the girl she was fine.

When the trio made it to the tunnels, they waited outside until it was time. Veronica was expected to meet them at 11pm which was right before the guard shift change. This was when they were the least likely to get caught, their next window wouldn’t be until close to 5am, and they really didn’t want to wait that long.

Betty paced back and forth in front of the tunnel entrance as Jughead and Toni made themselves comfortable while they waited.

“Is she always like this?” Toni asked the boy from where she was sitting on the grass. Jughead was leaning up against the building, arms folded across his chest. He shrugged his shoulders and looked across at the blonde who had since taken her ponytail out.

“Betty?” He called out in a voice only loud enough for her to hear.

Betty stopped and turned to look at him. “I’m okay.” She said again.

“Clearly.” Toni muttered.

Jughead nudged his foot against her back as if telling her to be quiet. It wasn’t helping anyone making comments like that. He walked across the grass to where Betty was standing aimlessly.

“Hey.” He whispered as he stepped closer to took hold of both of her hands. “They’ll both be okay.” He said softly

She nodded her head, feeling herself starting to calm down from the small comfort he was bringing her. It was a small gesture, but it helped her focus.

“I just need it to go perfectly.” She told him worriedly. That was something Betty grew up with, the need for things to go exactly to plan. It was something that both of her parents seemed to find important, but just like Alice, the need for perfection sometimes pushed Betty to a breaking point.

“It doesn’t need to be perfect. It just needs to work.” Jughead told her. They didn’t need smooth sailing, they just needed to set sail. He needed her to realise that things didn’t always need to go perfectly to succeed. His life sure hadn’t, and yet he didn’t think he was going to bad currently.

Betty nodded her head. She noticed then how her breathing had seemed to steady when she hadn’t been paying attention.

* * *

As it turned out, tracking Hal’s phone came in handy for more than one thing. As soon as Tom Keller revealed that Jason was now a missing person, Alice could only think of one person who could be responsible.

At first, she was going to leave Polly with the Blossoms, but then she realised that no matter how dangerous it may be, having Polly there might actually give them a chance at stopping the man. He still had a connection to Polly. He didn’t seem to care about Alice, and he certainly wouldn’t take kindly to FP trying to stop him either.

Alice found herself feeling less and less crazy as they drove the same road they had been hours earlier searching for traces of Cheryl, when they found out Hal was located in a cabin in the woods. An eerie feeling sent a chill down her spine as they pulled up. This was like the start of several scary movies, and she didn’t want to end up the same way those films did.

“Polly, you stay behind me.” Alice said to her daughter. She would do whatever she could to protect her eldest daughter and first grandchild, even if that meant turning herself into a human shield.

They were quiet as they crept around the building trying to figure out the best possible way to get inside undetected. They didn’t know where Jason was, but Alice knew in her gut that he would be inside.

They heard voices coming from one of the rooms. FP held his finger up to his mouth as they walked back to the other side of the house. They walked around to the back door and quietly crept inside the cabin that way.

“Hold it right there.” Cheryl said when she caught the three of them trying to sneak in. She held a gun out in front of herself, aiming it between the three, unsure who to aim it at specifically.

“Cheryl?” Polly asked, surprised to find the girl alive, and in the one place her father was supposed to be.

“Cheryl Honey, we’re here to take Jason home.” Alice told the girl, hoping she would put the gun down so they could all talk, maybe that would work if she played her cards right.

“No.” Cheryl said, shaking her head. “He did a bad thing. He’s staying with us.”

“Is Hal here too?” FP asked her in a nonthreatening manner. He wanted to diffuse the situation just as much as Alice did.

“This is our home. You’re trespassing.” Cheryl told him, moving the gun in his direction.

FP held his hands up. “We’re not here to cause any trouble. We just want to talk, make sure your brother is safe.”

“No you want to take him home, and let him walk free from what he did. All of his sins.” Cheryl said, shaking her head and the gun around.

“Sweetheart, Polly didn’t do anything. Please be careful. She’s having a baby.” Alice pleaded.

Cheryl’s face softened as she looked at Polly again. She remembered the girl being pregnant, and that being the reason she wanted to run away. “Hi Polly. I’ve missed you so much.”

“I missed you too.” Polly said to her sincerely.

Cheryl took a step forward, feeling an emotional connection to the girl who was once her best friend. FP saw this as an opportunity to try and take the gun from her, but Cheryl caught on far too quickly.

“You’re all trying to trick me.” She snapped, waving the gun around once again. She walked over to lock the door, before she pointed it at the three of them again. “Move.” She said, forcing them into the other room.

Alice was the first one to round the corner into the other room. She found her husband standing opposite her daughter’s boyfriend who was still tied to the same chair.

“Hal what have you done?” Alice asked the man as all three of them were pushed into the room with Cheryl blocking the doorway.

“He had it coming, Alice. He did this to our daughter. Look at her, all pregnant and impure.” He said in disgust.

Polly let out a whimper. It hurt hearing those words coming from her father like that. As though he found her repulsive all of a sudden. She tried to keep her eyes away from Jason to stop herself from crying. It was harder than she expected because she didn’t even have to look at him to feel like she was about to burst into tears.

“She’s still the same girl. Still your daughter.” FP pointed out. He knew it wasn’t his business, but he felt a protectiveness over Polly, and would never put his own daughter in this situation.

“Shut up.” Hal said to the man. “This doesn’t concern you.”

“He’s right Hal.” Alice said, shaking her head. “Look at what you’ve become. You’re a monster. First you try and send my daughter to a baby selling facility, then you kidnap her best friend and her boyfriend?” Alice said in utter disbelief. “What is wrong with you?” She asked.

“He didn’t kidnap me. He saved me.” Cheryl said to her.

Alice shook her head. “Honey, he was the one who brainwashed your mother into wanting to send you to the conversion therapy in the first place.”

“You’re lying!” Cheryl protested. “You’re all just lying to me because you want to take Jason.”

“She’s not lying Cheryl. It’s true. My dad doesn’t care about you. He doesn’t care about anyone except himself.” Polly said to her through tears. “This isn’t you. You’d never hurt Jason, you’d never hurt me. Look at what he’s turned you into.”

Cheryl looked between Polly and Hal. She didn’t know who to believe.

“Obviously they’re not telling the truth Cheryl.” Hal told her. “They want to divide us so that they can take Jason home where he doesn’t have to suffer any consequences for what he did to Heather, or to Polly.”

“I didn’t do anything to Polly!” Jason roared from his seat.

“Do you want me to gag you again?” Hal snapped in frustration.

Polly wiped her eyes. She didn’t want to be crying but this whole situation was so overwhelming. “Daddy, please stop.” She whined.

“You’re all wrong. Hal didn’t brainwash my mother. She’s the one who has poisoned all of you. She is a vicious viper; her venom has infected all of you.” Cheryl said as she moved to Hal’s side.

“Cheryl, I’ve know your mother a long time. She’s a horrible woman, but she wouldn’t send you away like that.” Alice tried to reason with the girl. “She bullied me all through high school, and I still can’t stand her, but she never would have thought to have sent you anywhere. She didn’t think of it until Hal started having sex with her.” She said in disgust.

Cheryl turned toward the man when she heard the last part. “You’re not sleeping with her are you?” She asked him with a shaky breath.

“He is.” Jason said from where he sat. “Every time Dad goes away, he’s been coming over. It’s been happening for months. Before you went missing.” He told her.

Cheryl watched her brother and knew he wasn’t lying. She looked at Hal with fire in her eyes. “You said you were on my side, that you were saving me from my tormentor.” She reminded him, feeling herself getting increasingly angry. Everything she had been told for the last few months had been a lie. She waited for Hal to come up with an excuse as she walked toward him with the gun facing him.

“Cheryl.” He said coolly. “I was just keeping our enemies close.” He told her, hoping she would buy it.

“And what about the sisters. Did you tell her about them?” She asked, still pointing the gun toward him.

“I may have mentioned it. But only because of Polly.” He insisted.

“That’s not what Nana Rose told us.” Polly piped up. “She said you were plotting to send Cheryl away so she could stop being gay.”

“What does that senile old bat know anyway?” Hal snapped. “If I had it my way she would have been the one sent away. The sooner she’s gone the better. What is she waiting for? We can’t wait forever for her to drop dead, we have things to do, money to spend.”

“How dare you!” Cheryl screamed at him, lunging forward.

FP moved to catch her. He wrapped his arms around the girl doing his best to hold her until she calmed herself down. Alice zoomed across the room to try and untie Jason with the help of Polly.

The both stood still in their tracks when the sound of a gunshot burst through the air.

Hal collapsed to the ground, gasping for air.

Alice turned toward Cheryl who had dropped the gun to the floor with a loud clunk.

* * *

Veronica had never felt so anxious in her whole life. She tapped her knuckles upon Heather’s door three times. That was the signal that it was safe for her to come out. The girl opened the door after a short moment of hesitation.

Veronica had been afraid that maybe this was like a movie and Heather was so brainwashed by this terrible therapy and would lead her into a trap, but she needed to push those thoughts away and hope for the best. Betty had assured her that if anything went sour they’d tell Hermione everything and Veronica knew her mother would be able to rescue her. The Lodges would do anything for their family, even when their family did reckless things like willingly admit themselves into conversion therapy.

The two girls tiptoed down hallways. Veronica’s footsteps were silent compared to the loud thrashing sounds her heart was making in her chest. She had no idea how worried Betty was, but if she had known it would have made her feel even worse. Betty always seemed to be so put together, so if she was falling apart it meant the rest of them had no hope at all.

Veronica pushed Heather back into the hallway they were coming from when she heard footsteps. The sound got louder and louder, and both girls pressed themselves against the wall as closely as they could get to avoid casting any unnecessary shadows from the moonlight.

When the footsteps stopped and the sound of a door closing told them it was safe to pass, they started moving, faster this time, but just as quietly as they had been before. They raced down the halls in their bare feet, because shoes would only put them at risk, and socks were a danger waiting to happen. They finally made it to the doorway down to the basement tunnels when they heard footsteps again. The two girls rushed down the basement stairs and ran for their lives.

The tunnel door was wide open, and they both didn’t stop running until their feet were muddy from the wet grass, and their eyes watered from the rush of cold air hitting their faces.

“Veronica!” Toni called out, rushing over to her. She wrapped her arms around the girl in a relieved embrace. She was just glad to see the girl emerge in one safe piece.

“Heather, I’ll introduce you to everyone in the car, but for now we have to go.” Betty told the girl. It was also a subtle comment toward Veronica and Toni who were still hugging.

The five teenagers started running into the forest and they didn’t look back.

* * *

All Polly could remember from the cabin was the blood. There had been so much blood. Nobody talked about it on the ride home. Nobody spoke about it when they got home either.

Alice took a shower, and FP made the teens hot chocolate downstairs.

Both Blossoms were staying the night at Alice’s, and FP didn’t feel like going home either. This wasn’t how he expected to spend his first night with Alice, but it is what it is. Everyone was far too tired to make it into a thing. They all were too afraid of having Hal haunt them in their dreams to worry about sleeping arrangements.

Nobody called for an ambulance, nobody did anything to help the man either.

Alice felt ashamed for what she did. Stood there and watched her husband bleed out.

Polly had blocked out all of her memories of the event all together.

Jason wished he had been the one to pull the trigger.

And FP wasn’t sure if he was the one who did it, or if Cheryl finished what she had started.

Nobody said anything.

Nobody knew what to say.

Hal was dead, and it was a secret none of them ever wished to share.

* * *

“You know I’m a big girl. I could have slept fine on my own.” Veronica whispered to the girl who laid next to her. It felt good to be sleeping in her own bed. Even though she hadn’t slept a single night at the SOQM, it still felt as though she had been in there for a lot longer than she actually had. It was so draining in there. She hadn’t even been to any of the sessions yet and she already felt as though her soul had left her body, and an empty shell had been left behind.

“I know, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. It’s not an easy thing you did today.” Toni whispered into the darkness.

“Yeah. I mean all of those kids are still in there. And I couldn’t save all of them.” Veronica whispered. “I just keep thinking about how I only helped one person today. One out of so many who have to wake up tomorrow and have evil people trying to tell them that who they are is wrong.”

“I know.” Toni said quietly. “But we’ll do whatever we can to help the rest of them.”

Veronica nodded. “Toni, can I tell you something?” She asked, rolling onto her side. She couldn’t see much of the other girl in the darkness, but she liked to imagine what Toni looked like lying beside her.

“Anything.” Toni assured her in a soft whisper.

“I like girls.” She said, closing her eyes. “Always have. I like boys, and I like girls. And sometimes I feel too scared to tell people because I know the world isn’t ready to accept it, but I am. I want to accept me for me, but it’s hard. You know?” She asked, hoping Toni did understand and she wasn’t just being a fool for opening up like she was.

“I think that you being you is the best thing I’ve ever heard.” Toni told her with a soft chuckle. “I think I’m really lucky to have met someone like you, to have met you. Whether you like girls, or boys, both, or neither. You’re a great person. You showed that today when you went into that place to save someone you don’t even know. That was brave, you are brave.” Toni told her, moving her hand to try and find hers in the dark.

Veronica bit down on her bottom lip as she tried to hold back her smile. It felt good talking to Toni. There was something about the other girl that just made her feel so safe, and so free. She squeezed Toni’s fingers when the other girl finally found her hand. “I’m lucky to have met you too.” She whispered.

* * *

When Heather was asleep in the bedroom, Betty walked out into the living room of the Jones trailer. FP wasn’t around, and when she came into the other room Jughead told her where he was, after he had received a text. He sent one back telling his dad what had happened, and the man said they could talk in the morning.

Jughead plugged his phone in and handed Betty a pillow. The two pull out sofas were made up. He made sure Betty got the more comfortable one because he knew how tired she was and wanted her to have a good night sleep. He could deal with the lumps for one night. During Polly’s stay he and his dad used to fight over who got the better mattress, but this night in particular Jughead would have fought to get the lumpy one just so Betty didn’t have to.

She sat down on the bed he had allocated to her and looked across at him with tired eyes. “This has been the most exhausting few months of my life.” She said with a tired groan.

“At least we can say we helped one person.” He said as he laid back on his own bed.

“We also helped Polly, and Jason. So that’s three.” She joked, laying back against her own.

“Don’t think we could have done it without you Betty.” He whispered, staring up at the ceiling in the darkness.

“You could have.” She told him, rolling onto her side to try and find him in the moonlight. “You could do anything.”

“I don’t think I could fly.” He teased, rolling over to do the same. Their beds weren’t touching but if he reached his arm out he’d be able to touch her if he wanted to. He kept his arms and legs to himself, but he was aware of how close she was.

“If you could, we’d never see you again.” Betty commented.

“You’d see me. I’d make sure of that.” He promised.

“Oh yeah? I’d like that.” She whispered.

“Me too.” He whispered back.

* * *

**Two Weeks Later**

“Wake up Andrews!” Josie shouted as she stood over a sleeping Archie. The boy was finally starting to get his privileges back, including outings with Josie. Mary had come to enjoy the company of Josie McCoy who came to visit Archie every weekend and walked home with him most days after school. She thought the girl was a good influence on her son, and she knew he needed more age appropriate relationships in his life, which was why she was being more lenient when Josie asked if it was okay if she could take Archie out to breakfast.

She wanted to get him out of the house, so when Mary approved of her plan she didn’t hesitate to run up and wake him. He had been in a deep slumber and woke up quite disorientated.

“Get up. Your mom said you could come to Pop’s with me for breakfast.” She said excitedly. “Come on, you know you’ve been missing Pop’s hash browns.” She sang excitedly, trying to get him to perk up a little.

“Okay, okay. I’ll go and get hash browns with you.” He laughed, rubbing his tired eyes.

She moved away from his bed so he could get up and get himself organised.

“Ah, Josie. Could you like wait outside?” He asked awkwardly.

She turned around to look at him. “You think I haven’t seen you without a shirt on before?” She asked, raising her eyebrows.

“Well I mean, no, but this isn’t about that. I…” He said, looking away bashfully.

“Oh! Gross.” She said, pulling a face. “What kind of dreams are you having-no wait I don’t want to know.” She said before leaving the room.

* * *

Jughead opened the door of the diner and stood aside so Betty could walk in first.

“Thanks Jug.” She smiled and held her hand out for him when he had let go of the door again. The two walked through the dinner and slid into a booth together.

“How long do you think it’ll be before they tell us?” Jughead asked, leaning over the table so he could keep his voice down.

Betty tapped her chin as she pondered the possibilities. “Hard to say. They’ve been keeping it up for at least two weeks.” She chuckled, glancing over at their parents who were already eating breakfast at a booth across the room.

“They’re really not very good at hiding it though are they?” He said, shaking his head.

Betty laughed and picked up a menu to find out what she wanted to eat.

“Are these spots taken?” Polly asked as she stood at the end of their table.

“No, of course not.” Betty said, scooting over so her sister could sit down with them. Jason sat down next to Jughead, which was definitely something nobody would have seen coming just a few months ago.

“I really want chocolate chip pancakes.” Polly told her sister as she glanced over the menu she had open.

“Ew…” Betty said, pulling a face.

“Betty I don’t think this relationship is going to work.” Jughead said from across the table.

She looked up at him and rolled her eyes. “It just means there’s more for you.” She pointed out, making everyone laugh, Jason included.

* * *

Veronica took a sip from her coffee and watched as Toni ate her first ever Pop’s Diner waffle. It was cute seeing her face change from anticipation to adoration.

“This is so freaking good.” Toni told her after she washed it down with a mouthful of orange juice.

“I told you. This town already made me go up a size. I swear!” She grinned, nudging Toni’s foot underneath the table.

Toni laughed. “I hadn’t even noticed.” She promised, smiling across at the girl.

“And if you had, you wouldn’t even mention it.” Veronica said admirably. She was pretty sure Toni was her favourite person at this point. She had met so many people in her life, but Toni was definitely in her top five, it was too soon to tell if she was the top of the list, but she had a feeling the girl would be up there in only a matter of time.

“If I go up a size, you’re welcome to mention it. I want to fill out my jeans for once.” Toni laughed.

Veronica’s face lit up at the sound of her laughter. It made her feel all warm inside. She held her hand out and Toni took hold of it straight away.

“You are adorable.” She told the serpent.

Toni grinned. “Not so bad yourself.”

“I am so glad to finally have fellow lesbians in town.” Cheryl said as she slid into the booth next to Veronica.

Heather sat down next to Toni, a smile on her face. It was good to be back, and to be out with her girlfriend in public for once.

“We’re Bi.” Veronica and Toni said at the same time.

Cheryl shrugged. “Gay is gay. All I know is that it’s over for all these straight losers when we go back to school.” She said, looking at her girlfriend with a big smile.

Heather smiled back at her. “We’re finally going to the same school. Didn’t even have to wait for college.”

Cheryl looked very pleased with herself, but soon realised the other two girls were very confused.

“Daddy kicked my mom out after hearing of her affair with Harold Pooper Scooper, and now she’s gone from rags to riches to rags again. Heather’s living with us now. So we’re in the same school district.” She filled them in.

“Ah. Congrats.” Veronica said, sipping her coffee again.

* * *

“I don’t know what to wear.” Alice told FP.

“He won’t care what you’re wearing Alice. He just wants to meet his parents.” FP said with a chuckle. “You’ll look beautiful in anything anyway.”

“Of course I will, but which one will I look the best in?” She asked, shaking her head. He didn’t get it. It wasn’t even about the outfit. She was nervous about meeting the boy she gave up all those years ago. She would only get one first impression.

“I’ll help you pick out the perfect one.” He promised. He was nervous about meeting his son too, but he really wanted to do it. For so long he imagined what a life with Alice would have looked like, and this way he could find out without giving up what he loved the most in the world, his kids.

“Thank you Honey.” She smiled, standing up to go and fetch some more napkins for their table. She walked past the booth filled with half of their children and gave her daughters a brief smile on the way past. Things were still a little awkward and raw when it came to what happened that night in the cabin, but she didn’t want it to get in the way of how they all lived their lives. It was over now and they all needed to move on. She went to the counter and took out a handful of napkins and started walking back toward her table.

A man walked in just as she was headed back. Nobody could see his face as he wore a mask concealing his identity. She didn’t take any notice of him until the unmistaken sound of a gunshot hit her ears, and panic erupted in the room. She turned to see where her kids were in amongst the chaos but all she could focus on was white noise, and the room turning white as she collapsed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to the handful of people who have been leaving reviews. You have no idea how motivating reviews are to fic writers! They make us want to keep writing and uploading so thank you so much to those people who kept me going.
> 
> This is the first fic I have started and completed since 2015. So thank you for giving me my inspiration back.
> 
> if you want me to write another fic set in this same ~universe, drop a comment below!


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